Calling
by KingdomOfLight
Summary: EDIT: STORY REUPLOAD/REWORK in progress! Set a year after the events of Advent Children, Cloud Strife and his friends face a threat that endangers the very life of the Planet, one that a flower girl had once sacrificed her life to save. Instructed by her ancestors from the Lifestream, Aerith begins a journey that further intertwines her and Cloud's destinies together. Clerith.
1. Out For a Ride

**Chapter One - Out For a Ride**

 _Wherever you see flowers bloom, you'll find me there with you._

* * *

The swirling atmosphere of space danced around her vision. From where she stood in the Lifestream, the blanket of stars swirled around her like glowing fireflies in the night. Amidst the stars and the endless knowledge that existed within the vast universe that circled around her, the young woman caught sight of the bright star that she could distinguish from any other.

Gently, she brought her arm up towards the star, her palm open as if to warmly invite the star to her. She smiled as the star set place in her palm, glistening brighter than any other. The endless realm of space around her dissolved, fading back into the green energy of the Lifestream in which she now existed. Emerald particles drifted around her, a peaceful smile on her face.

Her smile softened upon a closer look at the star in the palm of her hand. She drew her hand closer to her face and upon examining the bright orb closer, a rolling grassland appeared within it. The Cetra felt a warm glow encircle her heart as she closed her eyes.

* * *

A motorcycle darted across the rolling grasslands, leaving and disappearing into the distant fields just as soon as it had passed. Cloud Strife shifted the frames of his tinted glasses, his eyes set on his destination before him - the urban city of Edge, located just on the outskirts of Midgar.

Midgar had fallen into a state of ruin after the damage done by Meteorfall. While the city covered by the plate and all the sectors therein were never a welcoming place to live, Midgar was all but livable now. The Slums has only further been tarnished by unsavory residents and activities, Wallmarket had been burgled, ransacked and nearly quarantined and the sectors themselves had fallen into a place of disrepair and danger when pieces of the plate began to break away.

Even the Shinra Headquarters, which stood as the prominent core domineering over all of Midgar, had fallen and appeared broken, much to the content of Avalanche and all that opposed the Shinra Company. It was a new world, a different world than it was three years ago and, with the fall of Shinra, one could only hope that it was becoming a better one.

But then there was the church - her church, he thought to himself as he sped across the plains. It was where they had met and it had become his haven of solitude and peace, _his_ own place, as he'd called it. Even when the world seemed broken and all hope was lost, he felt at peace there, in that place that made him feel closer to her than ever. Although the rest of Midgar was destroyed and changed, her church remained the same as the very day they had met.

As long as the flowers continued to bloom, he would always find peace knowing she was there.

A call rang from his cell phone then, which he somehow heard over the blaring engine of the motorcycle. He decelerated his speed until he was able to firmly set a foot on the ground to steady the entire motorcycle. He dug into his trouser pocket and reached for his phone, flipping it open and placing it up to his ear.

"Strife Delivery Service. It's Cl-" The blonde man stopped short, as his friend's boisterous voice interrupted from the other end. "Barret...hi. I just finished my trip to Kalm. Had a week's worth of deliveries to bring. I'm on my way back."

Cloud closed the phone and placed it back in his pocket. A moment later, he was off again, carried across the rolling grass fields as he sped off towards Edge.

As he'd known, it was different world now. It was different than it was years ago and it would continue to change as he continued to live. But it was still a world he lived in without _her._ He didn't necessarily know how to handle the idea of the world continuing to change even as she wasn't there to see it with him, but he knew that, for his and her sake, he would find a way to live on and challenge each day at a time.

Traveling across the grass plains before him, he looked down at the pink ribbon that was tightly fastened around his arm. Living on was made easier for him when he always felt her presence with him, knowing that there would one day come a day where their reunion would take place and his search for eternal happiness would be fulfilled.

As the motorcycle continued to carry Cloud across the flowing plains, the afternoon sun set a golden glow across the entire world before him. He didn't realize it at the time, but within a day, a new story would begin and his next journey was already _calling_.

* * *

The afternoon streets near the center of Edge were like any other day, bustling and crowded with people shopping, kids playing in the urban streets or employees racing to catch the scheduled train. Tall buildings stretched into the sky, creating a cluster of structures that made up Edge and distinguished it from any other town or city in their world. Edge was urban with a sort of grittiness, fast-paced lifestyle and intolerance for nonsense that came with living there. In many ways, it was a lot like Midgar, which was not surprising since many people had migrated from there shortly after their sector had fallen to ruin and Edge became established.

It had been several months since the effects of the Geostigma disease had been cured throughout the world and the people had began to piece their lives back together again, not worrying when death was going to claim them. The once believed-to-be incurable disease caused people to give up on their lives and accept death as their only answer. People had lost lives, families, friends, children...The Planet seemed dire even after the threat of Meteor was extinguished.

But the miraculous rainfall from the heavens above caused water to gather within the flower girl's church, providing the healing properties to cure the ailments of Geostigma. The people saw it as a miracle, a mysterious act of pure light that granted new life, but Cloud knew the truth. The healing rainfall was brought upon them all by _her_ and he was forever grateful to her more than his own words could ever say.

For the first time in awhile, with the Shinra Company, Meteor and Geostigma gone, the citizens had felt like the world had finally achieved the peace they had once thought was unattainable.

Off the center courtyard of Edge, where a tall statue of an angel stood, down a narrow street stood a bar by the name of the Seventh Heaven. The bar had seen a quiet afternoon, only receiving a few patrons every hour or so.

Behind the bar's counter, Tifa had already started to wipe down the counter top and put the liquor bottles away, preparing to close the bar early that night. The young woman opened the register and let out a sigh as she counted the gil earned that day. Her sigh turned into a groan of discontent when she'd not made the sales she'd hoped for.

"Damn, sales are down, huh," asked Barret, who was sitting at one of the bar stools, as he chugged a beer down.

Tifa nodded and looked up at him from register, "Yep, for today at least. I can't necessarily blame it on people, either. After everything that's happened these last few months, people are finally starting to get outside the city and travel some more. I don't blame them for not wanting to spend the afternoon here, though it isn't exactly the best for business..."

"What do you mean not the best for business?!" Reno slammed his empty glass down on the freshly-cleaned counter after gulping down the last of his beverage. "I've been givin' you more business than you'd make in a week. I've been here since at least noon!"

"I'm well aware," said Tifa under her breath as she rolled her eyes. She couldn't even wrap her mind around why the former enemy had spent nearly the entire afternoon in her bar. Though, as long as he wasn't being too much of a nuisance and kept asking for drinks, and therefore her earning gil, she would manage to put up with him.

As Reno demanded another beverage, Tifa went off towards the cabinets, examining a few of the bottles, before mixing a drink together for him.

"So, have you heard how things have been going in Corel, Barret," she asked, passing the drink to Reno. She joked, "Can't say their successful without your leadership skills to keep them going, right?"

Some time ago, Barret had returned to Corel and was at the forefront of a project that led him and many of the people of Corel to search through the desert to find rare minerals, oil and other resources that were going to be used to prosper the future of the desert town. With Barret at the center of the cause, he finallygot to not only be the 'leader in charge' he always wanted to be, but it helped amend his relations with the people of Corel, altogether.

Barret laughed, "It was a mess down there when I got there 'while back. Can't say I ain't too surprised, though! The place was trashed when I lived there way back when, an' its only gottin' worse! I'm just glad I got Marlene out of there when I did."

Tifa smiled, "Yeah, Marlene's been great around here, you know. She's become so close with Denzel after Cloud found him and now the two are great friends."

"Well, thanks for lookin' after her while I was gone," he smiled. "But her papa ain't goin' anywhere anytime soon now."

Between her small chores and preparing the bar to close, Tifa thought about the past couple of months. She'd spent a lot of time taking care of Marlene with Barret. It was very reminiscent of their earlier days years ago back in the Sector Seven slums. Denzel, even though still a young boy, was very much independent and took care of himself. Whenever Cloud had the time, the two of them would go off on their own, which Denzel appreciated, as he felt a likeness to Cloud that Tifa nor Barret would understand.

As far as she was concerned, taking care of Marlene with Barret was a lot like extending her family, which only grew further when Cloud and then Denzel were brought in by Marlene. For the first time in a while, she felt like she was a part of a family and it was a feeling that she loved, especially after a childhood where her family and home were taken away. Sensing the way she had acted around them, she had felt like a mother to Marlene, Denzel and even Cloud. It was a feeling that made her happy and content.

'Denzel is a lot like Cloud, he's very introverted and quiet. He'll keep everything to himself,' she thought quietly to herself.

When she thought of Marlene, she couldn't help but see fragments of her friend, the flower girl, in her. The young girl was kind and outgoing, she always did her best to stay positive and make everyone around her feel better. She'd choose making everyone else happy before even thinking of herself. She even wore a light pink bow in her hair, which almost made their resemblance uncanny. It was easy to see that Marlene looked up to the flower girl as a role model and someone that she had loved.

Tifa snapped out of her thoughts and gave Barret a pat on the back. "Of course, it's what I'm here for."

Reno interrupted, "Damn, Tifa. How many people you got staying here? You now running a hotel?" He finished his drink and placed his glass down on the table.

"I don't know, sometimes it really feels like it."

The hum of a familiar motorcycle engine could be heard just outside of the bar, which caused Barret, Tifa and Reno to life their heads up. A moment later, Cloud propped open the door and made his way inside. "Hey guys, what's up?"

"Damn, Cloud! Took ya long enough," Barret laughed. "You were just goin' to Kalm? With how slow you were takin', we thought your spiky ass was headin' all the way to Junon!"

"Sorry, got caught up," Cloud explained. "A lot of fiends out there today."

Tifa looked up from swiping down the bar top that Reno had just messed up again. "No worries. Just doing some cleaning up around here. I'm thinkin' about closing the bar up early today. We haven't had a customer in a while and the only one I'm serving right now is...well, this one," she said, passing an annoyed glance at Reno.

Reno laughed and placed his chin in his palms, a feigned, cheeky smile on his lips, "You're so kind."

Tifa shook her head, ignoring the comment and went back behind the counter, where she continued her closing chores.

Barret patted Cloud on the back, "Yo, Spike! Take a seat, have a beer!"

Cloud shook his head and waved Barret off, "Maybe..in a little bit. I've got to run upstairs to my room and finish looking up some delivery papers I left on the desk. Do you guys need anything down here?"

"Nope. I got things covered, unless you want to help out by dragging Reno out of here," said Tifa.

"Oh, whatever," Reno scoffed, lifting his glass to his lips to get whatever traces of alcohol there was left.

Cloud waved them off and made his way to the small hall at the back of the bar. He quickly made his way to the end of the hall and reached the wooden staircase that ascended to the second level of the building.

Once Cloud was down the hall, Tifa turned from the bar and looked at Barret, "How do you think he's been?"

Barret looked up from his drink and shrugged at Tifa. "Who knows? Spike's a...hard guy to read. He's been better though than before, right? At least he's not shuttin' all of us out anymore. So, he's gotta be doin' a little bit better. Or is that just my wishful thinkin'?"

Tifa let out a sigh and crossed her arms, "I don't really know, Barret. Ever since his Geostigma was cured, he seems better...I think? It's hard to say. He's put all of himself into his work, so I guess that keep him busy. The both of us don't really see him too often anymore."

"That's for sure," grunted Barret. It wasn't often that he showed a serious, emotional concern for Cloud, but when he did, the feelings felt by Barret were truly genuine for Cloud, no matter what colorful expletives he'd nicknamed the blonde.

"He seems to be...passing through life day to day," Tifa contemplated. "I know he's been through a lot, but...I guess I can't really understand everything he's feeling."

She continued to ponder the change that she had seen in Cloud ever since the end of their first mission. After Cloud defeated Sephiroth, Cloud and Barrett had helped her establish this new bar in Edge and the three had lived there with Marlene. When Cloud got sick with Geostigma, it had caused a strain with everybody that he knew. Nobody had heard from him at all for months; it was like Cloud wanted to disappear. During that time, Tifa had discovered that Cloud had taken refuge in the church in the slums, as it offered him peace and comfort.

Cloud had become overcome with guilt over all of his failures, but mostly, for not being able to save his cherished one.

Cloud felt that he was useless to his friends and the family he was welcomed into. Geostigma had caused him to lose his desire to live. If dying meant being with _her_ again, it was something he'd quickly accepted and he let himself succumb to his sickness. He wanted to let himself die and with his life at its end, he moved into the church to live out his days in whatever peace he could find.

Tifa had chastised Cloud for letting himself give up so easily, but she couldn't understand everything he was feeling, either. She wanted to help him, but her confrontation with Cloud's problems caused him to only draw himself further away. She didn't know how to handle Cloud or his problems and when she had tried to do so, it backfired. She'd let out her aggression on her friendship with Cloud and things quickly became uneasy and challenging as their friendship appeared on thin ice.

Ever since their initial journey, Tifa had been battling with her own emotions for Cloud. They'd known each other ever since childhood, but they didn't really know each other. It was only until Cloud had left town in hopes to join SOLDIER did Tifa think about Cloud. With the idea of having a hero to call her own, Tifa had formed feelings for Cloud with the hopes of him being that hero, but as her feelings carried over into adulthood, they never seemed to match Cloud's and her heart hurt because of it.

When Cloud had met Aerith, Tifa couldn't deny the jealousy she felt as she watched the two form their own world together. She hated herself for it, too, as Aerith was one of her first real friends. She hated how she'd felt, how she was dishonest about Cloud's past; she would change many things if she could and she carried just as many burdens as Cloud did. Even after Sephiroth's defeat, she'd had inner battles with her emotions and how to better her own self. In the time of Cloud contacting Geostigma, she'd let go of her feelings for him and focused on taking care of her family. It was then when she really started to feel like a mother to Cloud, and for the first time, she felt happy and content with her relationship to Cloud through those feelings.

Now, she focused on just wanting to be a great friend to him, Barret and the others and that's all she wanted.

When Cloud had finally been cured of Geostigma, Tifa saw something change within Cloud. The forgiveness he sought was given to him, the peace he had searched for was finally found. Cloud had seemed lighter to everyone, he wasn't as burdened as he was for the many months before. Tifa knew it was because Cloud had found forgiveness, reassurance and hope from Aerith - and he was changed for it.

Since that time, Cloud would still go off on his own and spend most of his time by himself. He still wasn't entirely himself, everyone didn't expect him to be entirely himself again. Ever since Aerith's death, Tifa and the others had felt like a part of Cloud was missing...and they were right.

Tifa shrugged and frowned as she thought out loud, "He deserves to be happy...in whatever way he can find happiness. Ever since that first mission at the reactor, I think it's time to cut the guy some slack. He's been though a lot."

Barret agreed and crossed his arms over his chest, "We all have. To think back then...Biggs, Wedge and Jesse, if they could see everything that's happened, they'd be # $%&#%' themselves! And Dyne, too. Another one we lost along the way..." He continued, "...Aerith, can't ever forget that smile."

Tifa smiled softly, in silent agreement.

"If we ever need a reason why we should keep on keepin' on, I think doin' it for all the people that mean the most to us are reason enough, right?"

She nodded, "Yeah, you're right."

Barret turned to the hallway that Cloud had disappeared down. "Only hope Spike feels that way, too..."

* * *

When Cloud reached the top of the stairs, he passed by Marlene and Barret's room, which was placed right next to Tifa's. Down the small upstairs hall, Denzel had made claim to the small room which was just next to Cloud's bedroom and office. As he passed by Denzel's room, Cloud noticed Denzel and Marlene. He gave a small wave to the two, a tight-lipped smile across his face.

"Cloud!" Marlene exclaimed, as she leaped to her feet. She made her way over to him along with Denzel. She crossed her arms and tapped her foot. "Papa was wondering what was taking you so long."

"Ran into some creatures that needed taking care of," Cloud said, crossing his arms, trying not to smile at the two kids that seemed excited at the notion of him defeating monsters.

"I'm sure you took them out real quick," Denzel said, copying Cloud's pose.

"You know it, kid." The blonde leaned on the door frame, "Look, I got to go finish up some work stuff. How about I catch you later? We'll go out on the bike."

"Awesome," Denzel replied with a big grin.

Cloud turned from the room and continued down the hall, trying to suppress his smirk as he heard Marlene playfully complain how the two of them always get to do 'all the fun stuff'.

Cloud opened the door to his room and approached his desk, which was cluttered with paperwork that had yet to be sorted through. His room was rather bare. In the opposite corner was his bed. There was a wool rug in the center of the room, covering the cold, wooden floor. On the top of his desk, there were a series of photos of his friends in AVALANCHE, along with one of him standing off to the side of Tifa, Marlene and Denzel, a picture taken by Barret.

Scattered about his desk and covered the board on the wall were dozens of pictures of beautiful yellow and white flower fields, each taken by Cloud himself. Each one was a reminder of Aerith and so, he flooded his desk with them to have as many reminders as he could.

Staring down at his desk with the photos of his friends there looking back at him, what did pain his heart was that he didn't have a single photo of _her_.

He tried to shake off the sad feeling that overcame him and opened the desk drawer, placing the delivery service files inside. As he made his way through the folders he kept dedicated to his business, tracking what deliveries he had made and what new service requests had been ordered for him, he couldn't help but look up at the photographs of the flower fields. His eyes wandered from one of the photos to the next, a small smile appearing across his lips.

 _'I'll be waiting, bodyguard,'_ Cloud heard a voice speaking to him from within his heart, his soul.

'You always have the perfect timing,' he thought to himself, before he closed the desk drawer and stood up.

'I'm on my way.'

* * *

Back downstairs, Tifa had just finished closing the bar for the day. The last thing that she had left to take care of was Reno, whom she was trying to push out for the night. She took him by the collar, pulling him from the bar stool and practically dragged him to the door. "Come on. Place is closed."

"Oh, come on! I don't want to go back to those numbskulls!" Reno tried to persuade. "Ever since Shinra fell flat on its' ass," he coughed, "thanks to you guys...they have had me doing one stupid mission after another! Rufus had been nothing less than a real pain in the ass recently. To think, the Turks used to be an elite group..."

Tifa rolled her eyes, "Not my problem, Reno. Shinra and the Turks squabbling for purpose - sounds like a dream come true."

"Your sympathy is touching," Reno replied sarcastically.

Barret laughed from his seat, "You a real dumbass."

Cloud appeared from the downstairs hall, watching the scene unfold for a moment with a perplexed look on his face. "Everything...okay down here?"

"Yup, Tifa's just takin' out the trash," Barret joked, not bothering to see the glare from Reno.

"Look, okay, okay, I get it. We weren't best friends in the past, but come on," Reno tried to persuade. "I'm a changed man."

Tifa stared at him, her expression unchanging, telling Reno know that she was one not to be fooled. "Yeah, I don't think so."

Cloud made his way towards the door, "Okay then...I'm heading out. I'll be back in a bit." Without another word, he made his way from the bar, not wanting to get caught up in kicking Reno out of the bar again and would leave it to Barret this time.

Tifa took Reno by the arm, shooting Barret a glance. "Reno, come on, I think you have had enough to drink. The bar's closed! I'm done for the day! Come back tomorrow."

Reno's cell phone suddenly began to ring. "Hang on a sec, babe," Reno slurred, holding his finger up to Tifa, deciding to ignore the angered look on her face.

"Yo, whatsup?"

While Reno continued his conversation, Tifa continued to sort out any mess that caught her attention around the bar, notably, the additional empty glasses that Reno had left along the bar top. She muttered something about him under her breath as she got to cleaning.

"Oh geez, this one sounds like fun. I'll see you in fifteen." Reno lifted himself off of the bar, heading towards the door, Tifa trailing closely behind him, in case he decided to change his mind. "That was Rude. Turns out Rufus gave us another one of those stupid missions I was talkin' bout. It's been real fun."

"Of course it has", Tifa sarcastically replied, shutting the door behind him and locking it immediately. 'Ok, now that that's taken care of...'

There was a moment of silence between Tifa and Barret, something that had seemed uncommon after the last several hours of Reno's presence.

Barret was first to break the silence, "So, where do you think Spike's run off to this time?"

Tifa smiled, "Where do you think?"

* * *

On his motorcycle, Cloud shot down the highway, passing through the fields and vast mountains that stretched far beyond Edge and led towards Kalm and the Chocobo Farms. The clouds in the sky gave way to a beautiful orange sunset that seemed to cover the stretch of land before him for many miles.

Cloud felt a warmth in his heart, almost as if it was directing him on where to go. He followed this feeling, directing him and guiding him to where he was meant to go, just as it always had. Moments later, fields of beautiful flowers spread out around the single road then. The flower fields spread endlessly, covering every inch of the earth in their beauty. The carnations swayed in the gentle breeze, welcoming and peaceful.

It was then when Cloud caught sight of pink n the midst of the flower fields and he began to slow down the bike's speed. Pulling off to the side of the road, he steadied the motorcycle until it pulled to a stop. He stepped down from the bike and trailed a few feet forward, walking a short distance into the flower field. Yellow and white flower petals surrounded him, comforted him and enticed him to walk further. The fresh scent of the flowers flooded his senses and drew out all his memories of the flower girl.

He stepped further into the flower field, feeling a hazy, almost dream-like aura cover him. It felt like he had walked from one world and entered into another, a peaceful, tranquil place where all he'd know was happiness.

Then, her voice cheerfully spoke from behind him, soft and gentle.

"There you are. I've been waiting for you."

Cloud's heart beat faster, feeling the familiar warmth glow from inside when he heard the beautiful, familiar voice. He turned around to find the flower girl in the midst of the flower field, and just as he had always done here, he smiled for her.

* * *

"Hmph, I never thought I'd see the day. What business do we have going inside there again?" Reno asked Rude amused, as the two made their way down the now quieter streets of Edge.

Rude led Reno down one of the alleyways.

"Rufus has heard reports of suspicious activity coming from inside and he wants us to look into it," Rude stated, adjusting the knot in his tie and straightening out his dark glasses that hid his eyes.

"Suspicious activity, huh?" Reno let out a sigh, followed by a slight hiccup. He nearly tripped over the curb of the sidewalk, as Rude lent him a hand to help regain his balance, the alcohol suddenly getting the best of him. If he had known that he was going to be heading out on an important mission, Reno never would have stopped by Tifa's bar at all.

"And he wants us to look into it? This sounds more like Strife's kind of job. What happened to the good, old days of the usual kidnapping and physical assault? But why send us back there when that place is in shambles as it is? He should know. What would be inside that heap of trash? The president doesn't even go inside there anymore. Not that he's been awfully busy these days, anyway."

Rude replied, "He still has more power than we do and orders are still orders. Let's get on our way."

The two continued into the center of Edge and made their way down the street, towards a helicopter that was parked just off of the central plaza of the city.

Rude examined the sun off behind the set of buildings in the far corner of the central plaza. "The sun is setting soon, we should get there before sundown."

Reno quickly countered, "Ughhh...it's like Rufus knows how much of a pain in the ass this is. How many times have we gone on these stupid missions and every time, they all end the same w-way - us getting punched out. He knows that we're barely ever c-cut out for this kind of stuff," he slurred, letting out an inaudible curse.

"By the looks of your drunken stumbling, does it come across as such a surprise," a woman's voice shouted out from behind them.

The two Turks turned around to their comrade that approached them. "Elena. Where have you been?"

"Rufus had given Tseng and I a task in the city. When we first got word of the suspicious activity inside the Shinra building, Rufus had sent the two of us to look into it. We tried to track down the source, but whatever it was got away."

'Where's Tseng now," Rude asked.

"He's waiting for us at the entrance of the headquarters. When he got there, he considered that it might be best if he phoned in the president for some re-enforcement," Elena replied, leading the two men towards the helicopter door, opening the metal latch and stepping into the vehicle.

Reno sighed, exasperated, "Ohhh, so THAT'S what's so important...figures." The red-headed man followed closely behind Elena into the helicopter. Rude sat in the pilot's seat, shutting the latch and powering up the engine. The hum of the engine could be heard, as the helicopter was preparing for takeoff.

"We don't know what we're up against. Rufus figured that it would be best to have as many hands on deck as possible," said Elena. "Whatever made its way inside the building, it made a mess along the way. Pretty scary stuff to be happening inside an abandoned building of that size."

The propellers of the helicopter rapidly began to circle as it took off into the sky. With Rude at the helm of the controls, the copter was soon high above the city of Edge, headed directly towards the foreboding headquarters building the three had once called their workplace.

"Well, can't say I miss the place too much," Reno replied in a dry tone, looking over the now dilapidated structure of the Shinra Headquarters.

The signage of the building had fallen away, glass windows were broken and shattered, scraps of metal had began peeling and falling from the building and there was an overgrown, unlived presence that formed over the entire building.

"Well, home sweet home..."

* * *

"There you are. I've been waiting for you."

Cloud's heart beat faster, feeling the familiar warmth glow from inside when he heard the beautiful, familiar voice. He turned around to find the flower girl in the midst of the flower field, and just as he had always done here, he smiled for her.

The sudden appearance didn't startle Cloud in the slightest. He had come to this flower field many times and the presence of the voice and the woman it belonged to was more than welcoming. For a moment, Cloud hesitated, looking down towards his feet as a crimson shade crossed his cheeks. He pulled his eyes up to meet hers and the rest of the world around him seemed to fade away.

Once her emerald eyes met his, the Cetra woman felt a warm smile form on her lips. When the corners of Cloud's lips twitched upwards in exchange, Aerith couldn't help but let out a small smirk.

"I was hoping I'd see you today," she leaned forward and clasped her hands behind her back.

"You see me every day," Cloud said back with a small smile.

"I know," she let out a laugh and teased, "I always know when you're on your way...even when you're skipping work to do it."

He walked a bit farther into the flower field, almost as if walking into an alternate dream world where the flower girl was.

"I wanted to see you though," Cloud lowered his eyes, letting a small blush appear across his cheeks. He scratched the back of his head, boyishly trying to avert his gaze to appear more collected. "Even if I was here yesterday..."

"Cloud, you could come here every day if that would make you happy," Aerith said sincerely.

He looked up at her, his eyes meeting hers again. He nodded, "It would. I just...I..." He lowered his head when he couldn't think of the words to say to explain himself, but _he didn't need to_. Aerith saw through to his heart and could feel the words he wanted to speak.

"Hey, it's okay. I understand," Aerith took another step closer to Cloud and reached out to touch his arm, squeezing him gently. "All that matters is that you're here now. I missed you...even if it's only been a few hours."

He raised his head to see the flower girl looking into his eyes, a beautiful smile on her face.

Cloud opened his mouth to say something, but was surprised when the words couldn't form. He lowered his head yet again and mentally kicked himself when his words always got lost once in the presence of the flower girl.

Aerith simply squeezed Cloud's arm again and pulled him along with her, always knowing how to handle Cloud best in any situation.

Aerith understood who Cloud was. She knew that Cloud was a very introverted, quiet person. He didn't speak much of what was on his mind or really all that much about himself at all, but after the time she spent with him during their journey, and even now during these times when he visited her, she had seen him open himself up to her more than anybody else and that was all due to her. She had melted the icy wall that had frosted itself around his heart. When he was with her, his defenses came down and his walls with it, making it easy for Aerith to see through to his heart and see the real Cloud within.

Aerith knelt down towards the earth and examined the beautiful carnations, touching the softness of the petal with the tips of her fingers. The flower girl adjusted her position and found a soft patch of grass to sit on, while enjoying the peaceful scenery around her. A slight wind blew through the glade of flowers, causing them all to sway in the direction of the breeze. Aerith gently tucked a few of her chestnut brown bangs behind her ear, admiring the setting sunset in the distance.

Cloud stepped closer to her, before sitting down in the space next to her. There was a quiet tranquility that passed between them as they took in their surroundings and found themselves at peace. The space between them didn't need to be filled with words, as they were entirely content and comfortable with just being with one another there.

Aerith looked out to the flowers, "You know, these were always my favorite kind of flowers. They remind me of the ones that I used to have back in the church. They bloom so beautifully wherever they grow."

Cloud nodded his head, his shoulder brushing up against hers as they sat side by side. "I always take a flower back with me whenever I come to visit. My desk back at my room is filled with them."

She leaned her shoulder into him and raised an eyebrow as she smiled at him, "I've noticed."

He turned to face her, "That way, even if I can't always be here, I like to have a piece of this place with me."

Aerith looked at Cloud, her smile softening a bit. There was a moment of silence between the two. "It's a good thing these flowers bloom so easily then."

He let out a quiet chuckle in response. Cloud's smile reappeared, realizing that it was the first time he laughed that day and how it was always with her. His smiles, his laughs, the side of himself that no one else saw was always saved for his time here with her.

Aerith loved seeing him smile and laugh, something that only she had seen him do when she was alive. She looked back out on the setting sun from where the two of them sat now. From the corner of her eye, she looked at Cloud. She knew that when Cloud had first come here and was able to physically see and talk to her, he was amazed. She had left the living and returned to the Lifestream and yet, she was still here, seemingly as alive as the day they had first met. In the past, his fractured mind, his sorrow and then his Geostigma had made it difficult for her voice to reach him, but she finally broke through to him and now, Cloud felt as though she was with him, _always_ and that was the comfort he needed.

These visits, these moments shared together, it reminded the two of them of their times together when she was alive and how much life had changed. It was reminiscent of the moments shared in the Sector Six park or the time they sat around the bonfire at Cosmo Canyon. The two sat in content, finding peace within one another in a place that they shared together.

These moments, although irreplaceable to the both of them, sometimes felt like they weren't enough for them and there was nothing that could change that. She knew that she had belonged to the Lifestream now and could not fully return to the living world as herself. She had to make the most out of these moments she shared there with him.

Aerith knew that deep inside Cloud's heart, there would always be a part of him that would feel the pain and sadness of knowing that he had not saved her from being killed. She had told him that coming for her in the first place was all that mattered. He was there for her until the end and that was enough for her.

Even as she sacrificed her life to save the Planet and everyone that lived on it, Cloud would have done anything to turn back time and change it all if he could.

But even these daily visits in the flower fields would not heal his sadness, knowing she was no longer in the same world as him anymore.

When he would let out the small laugh or start to smile, she could still see the sadness in his eyes. It was a look that was solemn, almost unnoticeable if you had not stared at the young man directly. It was like a facade that Cloud had put on, almost as if to tell her that everything was okay, even when she knew that it wasn't.

The two continued to sit shoulder to shoulder, a light breeze dancing through the fields as they stared off into the sunset that had cast an orange glow over the field.

Cloud broke the silence that had formed and turned to the flower girl, "Aerith?"

Her head turned, "Hm?"

"I always wondered...how did you find this place? I've been here almost every day since you first called me here, but when I'm here with you in this place, it almost feels like a 'different world'," Cloud thought out loud to her.

Aerith brought her knees up to her chest, "Well, you're not wrong. This place was made by the Planet just for us."

He raised his eyebrow and questioned, "Is this...the Lifestream? Or the Promised Land?"

She placed a finger on her chin as she thought, before turning to him with a small smile. "Maybe...a little of both."

"What do you mean," he asked her.

"This place is still very much a part of the real world and yet, it's not," Aerith said, with a sense of otherworldly wisdom. "When you were fighting Sephiroth and then when you were inflicted with Geostigma, as I watched you from the Lifestream, I called out to the Planet and asked it how I could see you again..."

Cloud nodded in realization, "I asked the Planet the same thing..."

She smiled at him, "It took some time, but the Planet finally returned to me with an answer. I tried so hard to call out to you, but my voice was lost against the sadness and grief you carried. Finally, I got through to you. When you started to heal, my voice was able to find you. The Planet guided me to this flower field. I called out to you..."

"And I heard you calling my name...from inside my soul," Cloud said, almost to himself. He slowly brought his hand up and placed it over his heart, recalling those many moments when he could hear Aerith's voice echoing from within him.

"So, that's how we were able to find this place," said Cloud. "I never knew for sure until now."

She nodded, "Mhm. So, I think this place is a bit of both the Lifestream and the Promised Land. Ever since I became part of the Lifestream, I've learned so much knowledge and history from my mother and the other Cetra before us. The Promised Land, a place of eternal happiness. Once believed to be only a legend, but it's very real, though...it's different for every person. Some people live their entire life before they realize they've found it."

"I understand," Cloud said, a small smile beginning to appear on his face.

She turned to him, an eyebrow raised as she coyly grinned at him. "There's that smile. What are you thinking about?"

He blushed and shook his head, bringing a hand up to scratch through his spiky blonde locks. "N-nothing."

She stared at him for a moment longer, her smile never fading as she came to her own conclusion as to what Cloud was thinking of. Their chemistry was so organic and amazing. She never wanted to force any truths or emotions from within Cloud, but was surprised how he just naturally opened up to her. Even her light teases and pushes in the right direction saw Cloud responding to her differently than any other person in the world. They complimented one another perfectly.

Cloud could sense Aerith staring at him for just a moment longer and felt the blush rise to his cheeks. He stared down at the white and yellow carnations by his feet. He always felt so boyish and shy around her, but knew that he trusted her so much that he could tell her anything easily.

She was taken a little by surprise when he turned to her and spoke, warmth filling his smooth voice.

"This is my Promised Land."

Aerith looked at him, a beautiful sparkle in her emerald eyes. They were filled with devotion and hope.

"I understand now. The answer I received from the Planet - this is my Promised Land," said Cloud to himself again, as if solidifying his conclusion.

A small smile flickered across Aerith's lips.

Cloud stared into her eyes, honest and certain. "When I die and become part of the Lifestream, whenever that might be, I'll find myself in my Promised Land - here in this flower field...with you."

"Cloud..." Aerith placed a hand to her chest, touched by his heartfelt words. It was as genuine and direct about his feelings as Cloud could have possibly been, but Aerith understood him perfectly.

His eyes stayed locked on hers, his blush growing deeper.

She leaned in closer to him, feeling a happiness soar through her heart that was unmatchable. She felt as if tears would flood to her eyes at any moment, "Well, not a day will go by where I won't be here waiting for you."

His lips twitched upwards, "Good."

As the two sat in content in a world that was their very own, their eyes never breaking away from one another, a sudden glow came from within Aerith. She almost appeared to be transparent as the green aura materialized around her.

She lifted her hand to her face and examined it, "The Planet is summoning me back to the Lifestream. I'm sorry, Cloud. I won't be able to stay much longer. I wonder if everything is okay?"

He shook his head and smiled, feeling a bit disappointed, but he understood. "It's okay. I should probably try and get back before sundown."

She got up after him and tried to touch his arm, but found out that she passed right through him. This only caused her to let out an annoyed sigh, but she looked up at him and smiled. "I'll see you tomorrow?"

He smiled, "Like always. I just wish...I didn't have to wait until then."

"Hey," she tenderly leaned towards him, his eyes catching hers again as she smiled. "Wherever you see flowers bloom, you'll find me there with you."

Cloud returned her smile and nodded. He knew this was true, that she was always there wherever flowers had blossomed, but he felt she was always with him.

She smiled at him, "I'll be waiting for you tomorrow, bodyguard."

Cloud closed his eyes and smiled, not bearing to see her fade away from the flower field as it hurt his heart too much. Though, when he opened his eyes again, as he stood in the middle of the endless, open flower field, Aerith was gone.

His smile faltered for a brief moment, before he felt a warm glow fill his heart. The feeling was so palpitating, it caused the blonde soldier to lift a hand to his heart. _She was with him_.

He smiled and nodded, "Until tomorrow."

* * *

Night had settled throughout Edge. The streets were quieter now.

Tifa had closed the bar hours earlier and was taking the night off from work. Tifa was upstairs in her room, before she walked down the hall when she had heard the phone ring from down stairs. She quietly made her way down the wooden steps and entered back into the bar. After the fourth ring, Tifa had picked up the phone and answered.

"Hello?"

" _Hey, girl! How the %$ &# you doin'?_!"

Tifa laughed, "Nice to hear from you to, Cid Things are just fine. How are you? What's it been? Almost four months since I've seen you already?"

" _Yeah, yeah. Things ain't too shabby over in Rocket Town. Shera's about to pop the little tike out though,_ " Cid laughed through the phone.

Tifa smiled, unknowingly curling the phone cord around her finger, "That's great! Time has really flown by, hasn't it? I am so excited for you guys."

" _Yeah! Me too. The baby'll be comin' pretty soon! Cept' this little %#$ & might kill me before I get the chance of being a daddy_!"

" _Hey! I heard that, old man!_ " Tifa heard Yuffie shout through the phone.

A couple months ago, Cid and Shera had let Yuffie move in with them for the time being. After the team had defeated Sephiroth years prior, Yuffie had returned to her hometown in Wutai for a short while, where she and her father had tried working things out between their relationship issues that Yuffie had told the group of.

'That didn't go too well', Tifa thought.

For some time, Yuffie and her father had been able to put up with each other, but the two ended growing weary of one another yet again and Yuffie had left Wutai on her own after she had fallen out of good terms with her father. Now without a home, Tifa had been kind enough to offer Yuffie a place to stay at the bar. The young ninja accepted and once Denzel had temporarily moved into Cloud's room, Yuffie got the spare room all to herself...but her stay wasn't very long.

She had stolen money from the register, pilfered items from the customers, caused a riot almost every night with the guests and then nearly burned down the place when she tried to make food one night.

Tifa had honestly felt bad for the teenage girl. She saw Yuffie as a good friend, but not one that she could neccessarily rely on in a time of need. When Yuffie had been bounced around from place to place, Tifa had wanted her to settle down somewhere, which is why she had offered a room to her in the first place. Though, after her antics had nearly jeopardized Tifa's business, the bartender knew that she couldn't keep up with the antics anymore.

Since that time, Yuffie had again bounced from Edge to Rocket Town, where she now lived with Cid and Shera. Quite frankly, neither Cid nor Yuffie really wanted to live with one another, as the two could barely put up with each other as it was ever since they'd met one another, but Shera had convinced her husband to take in the young girl. When Cid agreed, he did not know what he was getting himself into. The last thing Yuffie really wanted to do was shack up with a married couple, but she didn't have anywhere else to go at the time.

" _Eh! Get outta here_!" Cid shouted into the phone, as Tifa grimaced at the loud altercation on the other end of the line. " _Anyways, I'm just callin' to tell ya that we'll be flying to Edge tomorrow for a visit. We should be there midday_."

"Ok, sounds great. I'll have the place ready for you guys. We'll see you then." Tifa hung up the phone and proceeded back up the stairs.

'I better have that extinguisher prepared if Yuffie tries to cook tomorrow...'

* * *

Cloud had made his way back to the Seventh Heaven shortly after the sun had set. He parked Fenrir outside behind the bar and hopped off, quickly making his way to the entrance at the back of the bar.

He made his way up the stairs to the second level and passed by Barret and Marlene's room, stopping in his tracks when he heard the two shuffling through the belongings in the room. Cloud stopped in the doorway and looked as Marlene and Barret searched through the slightly ransacked room.

"What's going on here," Cloud asked curiously.

"Oh, Cloud!" Marlene turned back from her drawers and leaned forwards. "I'm looking for the flower you gave me! The one you got from Aerith a real long time ago!"

"Really?" Cloud asked, surprised that she still would have had it after all these years. He remembered the flower perfectly. White and yellow, the same as in Aerith's church and the flower fields. It was the first time he had seen Aerith and she was like a bright light that cut through the rest of the darkness that was Midgar.

Even after he and the other members of Avalanche were just responsible for blowing up a reactor and causing chaos through the sectors, Aerith's gentle warmth thawed Cloud's heart from the beginning. Their interaction was short and simple, and yet, Cloud stood on that street, never taking his eyes off of Aerith as she left, and a new and wonderful feeling took place in his heart - something that told him their meeting was more than just a chance encounter.

As Marlene tore through her drawer, Barret shook his head. "Marlene, are you sure you brought it with you here? That was a long time ago back when we used to live in Midgar, remember? That flower's probably not lookin' too good now...and that after all the trouble that happened in Midgar."

"No, I remember, papa!" Marlene exclaimed, "It might not be as nice looking as when Cloud gave it to me back then, but it's special! I definitely remember taking it with me when I went to live with Aunt Elmyra and when we moved here. I'm sure of it."

"Do you want me to help?" Cloud asked, also in part because he would have liked to have seen a token of his first encounter with Aerith again. He thought it had been lost over time and that it was just another memory of the past taken away.

"No, it's okay, Cloud" Marlene assured. "Besides, Denzel is looking forward to going out on the bike! He's been waiting in his room."

"Thanks," Cloud said with a simple nod. He turned down the hall, letting a smirk out when he heard Marlene complain about how he always let Denzel do 'cool stuff' while she just got to sat around and watch. He went to Denzel's door and knocked.

Denzel looked up from his bed, "Cloud, you ready?"

"Yeah, kid," Cloud nodded. "Grab your jacket. We're going out."

"Where are we going," Denzel asked curiously.

Cloud smiled, "My place. Let's mosey."

The two of them quickly and quietly made their way downstairs and out the back entrance of the Seventh Heaven. As their footprints echoed from outside, Barret turned to his adoptive daughter and smiled at her.

"What's gotten into you, Marlene?" He laughed at the girl's antics as she continued to scurry about the room.

Marlene turned around, almost as if she was offended, huffing up and placing her hands on her hips. "What do you mean, papa?"

"You never told me about keeping that flower. It seems to really be important to you," said Barret.

"It is important! It's special," explained Marlene. "I always kept it with me while you and your friends went out to protect the Planet. It reminded me of the flower lady and it made me so happy. And, I guess...I just wanted..."

Barret remained quiet as he listened to his daughter speak, his eyes softening.

"I wanted to give it to Cloud, so that...maybe he can be happy again, too," said Marlene, a hint of both hope and sadness in her eyes.

"Marlene..." Barret said, touched by his daughter's caring and thoughtful actions.

"I just wanted to do something to make Cloud a little bit happier," Marlene said with a small smile as she sat on the edge of the bed.

Barret rose to his feet and sat next to his daughter, "I'm sure it would have made him very happy - which is why we ain't gonna stop until we find it, right?"

"Right," she exclaimed with a happy nod, before she continued to scan around the room for places she hadn't searched yet.

Barret smiled down at his daughter. Even though she wasn't his biological daughter, Barret understood it was far more than just blood that made up family. Even though he'd spent some time away from her and their life together wasn't always easy, he loved his daughter more than anything. He'd choose her over anything in the world and always put her first. Seeing her so determinedly trying to make someone else happy now, he couldn't have been more proud of her than he already was.

He smirked, "You know, I might not be the best papa out there...but you're the best daughter I could have asked for."

Marlene got up from her bed. "Well, I think your the best papa in the world anyway," she said, a bit matter-of-factly.

Barret's smile thinned, "I hope so."

"Come on, let's keep looking. It's gotta be somewhere around here..."

* * *

The Turks' helicopter circled the old Shinra Headquarters building. As the moon stood above in a shrouded, dark sky, the fallen headquarters stood in the foreboding dead of night. From high above, the Turks examined the ruined sectors, the city streets, the districts that were once filled with so many impoverished people, now - it was like all life had been drained from the place.

"Damn, what a mess," Reno said under his breath. "Hard to believe this place was once so much more than it is now."

Elena scoffed, "Eh, don't get sentimental, Reno. Things change, no big deal."

Reno chuckled, "Heheh, it's not like I ever liked workin' here anyway."

"When did you ever like working at all," Elena finished.

"Point taken," Reno turned back from the front seat of the helicopter to stare at her. "Since when have you become such a spitfire?'

"Since I've been working with your lazy, drunk ass nearly every day."

"Point taken again," Reno smirked.

Elena stared down from the window of the copter, carefully trying to eye the entrance of the building as they passed. "Tseng and Reeve should be down there now. They said that the President would be meeting with us when we arrived."

"Yay," Reno said sarcastically.

"Rude, take us down if you can," Elena instructed. Rude, who had been at the helm of the copter's controls, silently nodded and shifted the copter slowly down, nearing the headquarters building.

Then, Elena's phone went off. The blonde Turk reached into her blazer and retrieved the phone, flipping it open to get a call from none other than Tseng. "Hello? We're on our way now."

A moment of silence passed between the three comrades, only the sound of the shuffling copter propeller to be heard.

"What?" Elena asked, a genuine and uncommon tone of concern in her voice. The sudden change in the blonde's voice caused Reno to turn back in question.

"What's going on," he asked.

"Yeah, yeah. I'll tell them. Be right there," Elena said, before shutting her phone and putting it away. The look of confusion and concern didn't seem to fade from her face.

"What was that about?" Reno asked again.

"That was Tseng," Elena said quietly. "He and Reeve were doing some recon inside the Headquarters at the President's request..."

"So?"

Elena let out a quick chuckle of frightened astonishment. "From what they told me, it seems like someone snuck into the Shinra Research and Scientific Development Department..."

Reno smirked, "Well, good thing loony Hojo isn't around anymore to see this or his already loose screws would only get looser."

"That's the thing, though," Elena said. "We know Hojo had kept many experiments and secrets hidden inside his labs. He rarely let anyone in there. Hell, none of us have ever been inside for that matter."

"What are you getting at," Reno asked.

"I don't know how it happened, but..." Elena continued, a hint of fear in her eyes, "...someone managed to get inside his labs, even when they were sealed years ago after his demise."

"Seriously," Reno said, feeling a chill trickle along his spine.

"It gets worse," she warned. "Those 'secret experiments' Hojo had been working on, those monsters that he'd mutilated and researched and used for his sick projects, they've...escaped."

Reno turned back to her, the same sort of fear in his eyes, too, now. "They fought their way out?"

"No. Someone or something released them," Elena said. "From what Tseng examined, there were no traces of the monster's fighting their way out, but their confinements were...unlocked."

"Creepy," Reno seemed at a loss of words. "How could something have made its' way up into that part of the building anyway? I know security's not as top notch as it was back in the day, but still."

"That's not what's concerning me," Elena said, worried. "If something made its' way into the building and really did release those other creatures out into the world, it would have to know the Shinra Headquarters well enough. It would have had to have been here before..."

Reno's eyes squinted, deep in thought.

"I have a feeling that whatever might be inside there is stronger than your average monster..."

As the helicopter lowered closer down towards the plate at the base of the Shinra Headquarters, far beneath the layered metal and pillar supports, a motorcycle raced through the sectors of Midgar.

* * *

As the motorcycle raced through the quiet, abandoned evening streets of Midgar, Cloud looked over his shoulder and smirked at the excitement in Denzel's face. It was moments like this where the two would go off on their own and spend time together. They understood one another on a different level that anyone else could; they saw a lot of themselves within one another and a deep care had formed between two.

To Denzel, Cloud was like an older brother, a guardian, someone that would always protect him. He thought Cloud as someone cool, a person that inspired him and someone to look up to.

The motorcycle carried the two through the streets that were cluttered with heaps of debris and discarded belongings amidst the junk that seemed to be consistently piled within the slums of Midgar. It wasn't long before the slums gave way to the beautiful church that stood at the far end of the sector. Roving along the dirt path that led to the large ancient doors of the sanctuary, Cloud skid his motorcycle to a stop, just a short distance outside of the church. Once parked, he stepped off the motorcycle along with Denzel.

"We're here. My place," Cloud said to him. "Remember our first time here?"

"Yeah, this is the exact spot where you found me when I was sick," said Denzel.

"Mhm," Cloud quietly acknowledged, before stepping up to the large doors of the church. Pushing the wooden door open just slightly, he peered inside and like always, the flowers blooming on the altar of the church were beautiful and radiant, just as they were on the day he had fallen into Aerith's life. Parts of the flower bed were still seeped in puddles of the healing waters that cured people of their Geostigma.

"The flowers are growing really nicely," Denzel smiled. "I bet Aerith would be really happy."

Cloud smiled down at the younger boy. Over the many months they had grown close, Cloud had told him endless stories of his time with the flower girl. He didn't think there was a moment that they had together that Denzel didn't know about. Denzel would sit, quietly listening to the blonde talk more than he ever would usually. In return, Cloud felt a sense of content in his heart when Denzel would speak of Aerith, as if the young boy had always known her. Cloud truly felt that there was a deep connection between him, Denzel and Aerith.

Cloud gave Denzel a pat on the head and then directed him over to the wooden bench that sat opposite of the entrance to the church. Denzel followed him in turn. "You know, kid. When I found you out here, outside the church, I couldn't really understand it, but I just knew that it was Aerith that drew us to find one another."

Denzel nodded, "Yeah, I was sick and couldn't take care of myself after living on the streets for so long."

Cloud continued, "After me and the others stopped meteor, we tried to move on with our lives, but I couldn't, not without Aerith. Losing her hurt more than anything I'd ever felt before. Even when there was so much to celebrate with saving the world, I couldn't knowing that she wasn't there by my side when she should have been."

Denzel remained quiet as he listened to Cloud speak. It was one of those moments where Cloud's thoughts and emotions rarely came from within him and he needed to get it out.

"I was lost for so long, traveling through the sadness and the pain. Even when I had my friends, there were just things they couldn't all understand," said Cloud. "Losing her was like losing a part of myself. I'd spent hours here at this church alone, calling out to her for an answer for what my purpose was to still be living..."

"Cloud..." said Denzel.

"I didn't want to be living anymore. I'd walk through these streets alone and without her, I felt lost and maybe...a part of me still feels that way," Cloud crossed his arms and closed his eyes. "But then one day, I was here and I found you. I understood then. Aerith wasn't just making us meet because we needed each other, she was giving me a new reason to live - so that I could take care of you, kid."

Denzel smiled, "And you do a good job at it, Cloud."

Cloud smiled and looked ahead at the church. "I'm doing it all for you and her, us. I can hear her voice so clearly now. Even when our words don't always reach, I still feel her and...it's like I'm finding a part of myself I lost."

Denzel nodded.

Cloud sighed, "I don't know what lies ahead for me, I'm still finding my way, but it'll be easier knowing she's with me."

"I'm sorry about everything, Cloud," Denzel said after a long sigh. "But everything'll work out, right? I mean, you don't need to know everything life's gonna throw at you."

"You're right," Cloud nodded. "I guess we all have to continue on by living our lives in whatever way gets us through it. Denzel, from where I am now, my life has never been easy. I never had a father, I was left as an outcast in my own hometown, I never achieved the goals I had since I was your age, I've failed people in ways I could never make up for...I've lost the person I..." he stopped and closed his eyes. Cloud shook his head, feeling the pain in his heart renew. "Many others might consider my story a failure up to this point and maybe they're right. I think back to the beginning before all of this and remember a time when I only cared about money and couldn't care less about the planet. That's the past Cloud I want to forget."

"But you've changed since then," Denzel interjected.

"I know. I owe that to Aerith, too. That's why I need to keep moving forward...for the both of us." Cloud turned to Denzel, "I want to start a new story...a second chance to become the person I want to be. I might not end up as a 'hero', but I'll try to be a better person than I was before."

"You already are," Denzel laughed.

"I hope so, kid." Cloud sighed, "I don't know where this new story will take me, but I do know that it will end where I want it to be - my Promised Land."

Denzel smiled up at Cloud. Silently, the two rose from the bench and made their way back towards the motorcycle.

The blonde stopped in his place and let out a heavy sigh, closing his eyes and lowering his head to the ground. When he opened his eyes again, they widened.

There, in a puddle formed within the earth, was a single, dried yellow and white flower.

He gently lowered himself and picked up the carnation by its' delicate stem, handling it as if the slightest touch would ruin it. To his amazement, as he lifted it to his face, the dried flower petals flourished, the faded colors of the petals renewed - the flower fully blossomed beautifully, looking exactly as it was the day it was handed to him.

It was the flower he had purchased from Aerith on the winter night so long ago at the start of his journey to save the world.

The rim of his eyes watered as a smile formed on his lips. He looked around him then, as if sensing her presence there with him. As he looked to the church, he swore he saw here there, between the thin opening of the doors, tending to her flowers just like she always had. It was a brief moment, but it was certain, she was there, she looked up from her flower bed, before smiling up at him.

"Cloud, are you coming?"

Cloud turned from the church and looked back at Denzel, "Y-yeah. Be right there."

Before he turned, Cloud thought back to what Aerith had told him earlier that day.

 _"Wherever you see flowers bloom, you'll find me there with you."_

He stared looking at the church, his place, for just a moment longer, a gentle smile appearing on his face when he felt the warmth in his heart which he knew could only come from her.

"Hey. What's that," Denzel asked, pointing to the flower in Cloud's hand.

Cloud closed his eyes and smiled.

"It's the start of my new story."


	2. Shadows of the Shinra Headquarters

**Chapter Two - Shadows of the Shinra Headquarters**

The helicopter descended down towards the top of the plate that spanned the entire upper perameters of the ruined Midgar. After more than two years of abandonment due to the destruction that Weapon's assault and Meteorfall had wrought, the place seemed like a dark, shadowed spot of earth left to decay over time.

When the helicopter had landed at the entrance plaza of the former Shinra Headquarters, Reno unlatched the helicopter door and stepped down into what was once his former workplace. Now, the marble tile that led to the glass entrance doors of the Shinra Headquarters was cluttered with gnarled metal and broken glass, the electricity had been powered down and a thick layer of dust seemed to form over the surface of everything.

"Couldn't afford to keep a janitor on payroll, could the ol' president," Reno remarked sarcastically, as he stepped out of the helicopter.

"You haven't heard?" Elena turned to Reno, an eyebrow raised.

"Heard what?"

She glanced over her shoulder and leaned towards her comrade, "Well, just between you and me, Rufus ain't doing too well nowadays. With the Company figuratively and literally falling apart, Rufus is trying to hold on to anything that would still benefit him, but the people have turned against Shinra like never before, going out of their way to not use Mako energy or rely on the company for anything. He's really taken a beating."

"Heh, looks like his daddy's old money can't buy him out of this one," Reno smirked. Truth be told, the redhead never had much love for any senior Shinra executive anyway. "Thought I'd never see the day one of the Shinra's get to lose all their power."

"It seems like it's happening though and quickly. With the company ruined, people actively against them and the amount of Gil the company lost over these last few years, Rufus certainly isn't content by any means...not until Shinra can establish some of its' former power like in its' glory days."

"Well, the people see the true face of the Shinra Company now, so I doubt that would be happening any time soon," Reno said. "Where'd you hear all of this anyway?"

"Tseng," Elena shrugged. "Rufus tells him a lot and trusts him. Now, does Tseng trust Rufus? I doubt it, but the less the ex-president knows, the better."

Reno smirked," Hmph, you and Tseng seem close."

"Shut up," Elena scoffed.

Reno, Rude and Elena carefully made their way through the wreckage and debris that cluttered the base of the headquarters. The trio approached Tseng, who was checking his wrist watch, tapping his foot impatiently.

"What took the three of you so long," Tseng asked.

Elena answered first, "Sorry, sir. It took a while to track these two down. Reno was...uncooperative, to say the least."

Reno rolled his eyes and let out a sigh. "Let's just get this party over with, shall we? Rufus sent us here to get our hands dirty, so we might as well give the boss what he wants..."

Elena cut him off, "Right, so let's at least get inside this god-forsaken place and see what's causing all the trouble. We'd better make sure that we're ready for whatever might be causing this 'unusual' activity."

"Do take caution," Tseng warned. "Whatever had managed to break into the science laboratories had left destruction in its wake. It's best to go in prepared."

The Turks had stepped up to the main doors of the former headquarters and pushed them open. Once inside, the group walked into the lobby. The lights had been burnt out and destroyed, leaving the team to make their way around the debris that cluttered the lobby in total darkness. There was an eerie silence. Even though not a noise was heard, the distinct quietness actually caused an uneasy heaviness that was spread throughout the lobby. The group snuck across the floor, careful not to make any noises, as not to disturb anything that could be waiting deeper inside of the building.

They made their way up the lobby stairs that led to the main access elevator at the back end of the lobby.

Reno asked in a hushed whisper, "Rufus doesn't expect us to check EVERY floor of the damn place, does he?"

"We were given direct orders from the boss. We can only assume that he would want them done as quickly as possible," said Tseng.

"Besides, if there is something dangerous inside here, it shouldn't be too long to find it," Elena said.

"Then, let's split up. Doubling up will get us through this place faster. If you need back-up, just phone us in."

Elena replied, "Right. Tseng and I will take the lower half of the building. You and Rude can start your way at the top and work your way down to us. We'll meet in the middle and work our way out from there."

Reno went to the elevator, pushing the button, almost surprised that it stil functioned after all this time. "Roger. If you run into trouble, well, make it easier on us and take care of it yourself."

"Typical", Elena said, before she and Tseng made their way towards the main staircase that made it's way up the floors of the building of the tower. When the elevator had arrived, the doors pushed open and Reno and Rude stepped inside. "You really sure we can trust this thing?" Rude replied, raising an eyebrow at Reno. It seemed to be the first thing the man had said all day.

"Eh, a little uncertainty is always good to liven things up," Reno replied, taking out the floor access card that he had kept from years ago, giving them access to all of the floors of the building.

It was common knowledge that any of the upper floors of the Shinra Headquarters were essentially impassable to any commoner. There was a special access card that was needed to navigate through any of the higher floors of the building. This is when Reno appreciated his work as a Turk, they had privileges exclusive to them. Reno inserted his access card and pushed the button for the highest floor.

"Going up."

* * *

Elena and Tseng made their way up the staircase that led upbthe first few floors of the building, making a stop at each floor to do a quick search. What they found was nothing out of the ordinary. It mostly looked exactly as it hand done a few years ago, but there was a sense of frenzied abandonment throughout those initial floors. Things were left in a bit of disarray, assuming from the Shinra workers, who had fled the building during Weapon's attack or Meteorfall.

While arriving at the eleventh floor, Elena started to pant. "I think we have our work cut out for us. I must have forgotten how big this place was...or maybe I'm just not used to taking these damn stairs."

"Tired already? Hmph," Tseng replied. "We still have a long way to go. Besides, if what we're looking for is really as dangerous as it sounds, we'll need our strength to fight it."

"Do we even know what we're searching for?" Elena inquired, entering into the doorway that led to the next floor. "We didn't exactly get a good idea with Reno being his elusive self as usual."

"Rufus was concerned when he first caught word of the activity inside the building. That was reason enough to start the investigation, I suppose," Tseng replied. "He may have let the security forces go, but I think...the surveillance cameras might have caught something. They might give us a lead in what made its way inside the building. We should head there first."

"Hopefully the security room is still powered up," Elena said. "It's not like those security cameras were any good when they were functional. Cloud and his friends still managed to break in to rescue the flower girl even with our security forces at their highest."

"Yes, Cloud was successful, but our recent intruder won't be. We'll use the cameras to find out where they were heading and why they were doing in here," said Tseng.

"Let's get to the control tower and see what we can find," instructed Elena.

The two made their way up to the next staircase that led further up the building. The eerie silence continued with every foot step they took. It was discomforting to say the least.

"I wonder how Reno and Rude are doing," Elena thought out loud. "Do you suppose they found anything?"

"Possibly, but just be concerned about yourself right now," said Tseng. "You won't be able to watch your own back if you're too concerned about them."

Elena huffed up as she ascended the stairs, "You know, you're not doing a very good job at making me feel better about this little break-in situation of ours. Just how dangerous is this opponent of ours? What do you know that you're not telling me?"

Tseng stopped at the top of the stairwell and turned back to Elena. "Rufus was the one to find the damange left behind by our intruder. He found a body. It was...torn apart."

* * *

Reno and Rude stood at the top floor of the Shinra Headquarters, the former President Shinra's office. The space had a large wall of glass windows behind the president's desk that overlooked the rest of the plate above Midgar. Of course, the grandeur of the office space was much different now with the panel of glass windows shattered, dust covering the desk and the electricity surged out. There was an unusual musky scent in the air, almost as if the office space was like some attic lost over the years.

Reno and Rude turned from the shattered glass windows and walked across the office. As they stepped, they noticed the footprints they left behind in the dust that covered the ground. Reno smirked, "Seems like we're the first ones up here in a long time."

"Hmph," Rude grunted in reply.

Reno crouched down and looked at the footprints they left on the ground. He brought his gloved hand forward and dragged a sole finger across the surface of the floor, clearing away a single line of dust. He looked up at Rude with an eyebrow raised, "You thinkin' what I'm thinking?"

Rude remained silent as he repositioned his glasses to get a better view through the tinted frames.

"If the rest of this building is just as rundown and forgotten as this office is, we should be able to find footprints that'll lead us right up to the intruder," Reno said, rising to his feet. "Then we can nab 'em and force 'em to tell us what the hell they're doin' in a place like this."

"Hm," Rude nodded and began to make his way down towards the exit stairwell that led to the lower floors beneath the office.

"Let's get a move on then. We got some footprints to look for, an intruder to find and an ass to kick," Reno said, digging into his blazer pocket for his phone. "I'll give Elena and Tseng a call and see if they've come across anything unusual."

* * *

At that same moment, Tseng didn't notice the vibrating phone in his pocket, as he and Elena briskly walked up the winding staircases that zig-zagged up the dozens of levels of floors in the company building. They reached a landing, where Elena walked to the door frame and peered inside.

Elena pointed forward, "This should be the floor, right? If I remember correctly, the security office should be right across the way."

"Right," Tseng nodded, leading the way. Walking past a set of half a dozen marble pillars, he caught sight of the security office that was tucked away in the far corner of the room.

Elena turned to him, "So, what Rufus told you is really true? He found a body that was...mutilated beyond recognition?"

Tseng nodded, "Hm. He saw it with his own eyes and it wasn't a pretty sight to say the least."

"Who did the body belong to," she asked him.

He could only shrug and shake his head, "Who knows? Nobody's claimed any missing person report and from what Rufus has told me, it'd be nearly impossible to determine the victim's identity based on the aftermath. It was certainly a man, probably some drifter that was making his way through a bad part of Midgar, but that's all we know. Your guess is as good as mine."

Elena placed a finger on her chin, "Hm. Strange..."

"I have a feeling that if we're going to find any answers, this'll be the place to start," Tseng said, reaching for the door of the security office and pushing it open.

The two stepped inside the small square room. There was a chair that was placed in front of a control panel with numerous buttons that operated the several dozen security surveillance cameras. Above the console were about a dozen small monitor screens that would usually capture surveillance footage of several floors of the building, but now they stood dark.

"The monitors aren't working," said Elena.

"It's not that they aren't working. They just aren't powered on," Tseng said, before sitting down in the chair and wheeling over to the console. He pressed a button in on the large hardware beneath the desk and watched as it blinked a few times, as if actually registering that it was being used after years of dormancy.

One by one, the surveillance monitors began to blink on, showing a static and fuzzy black and white image. Pixelated and distorted, they could slowly start to make out certain areas of the building, but with how bad the image quality was, they couldn't really make out anything clearly just yet.

"It'll take a moment for them to focus," Tseng assured.

The surveillance cameras captured a dozen rooms and angles at a certain time before they would switch to a new angle, showing various vantage points for optimum security. As Tseng had guaranteed, the images on the console monitors soon began to sharpen and become clearer.

"Let's see what we have here," Tseng said, wheeling himself closer to the console and taking hold of a few buttons. He pressed in a button and switched one of the cameras over to the lobby of the building. He quickly pressed in a few buttons, switching a few of the monitors over to various different rooms. He zoomed in and out on a few of the different camera angles, as he acquainted himself better with the control panel. He continued quickly flipping through a few of the camera vantage points to uncover anything quicker.

"There!" Elena cried from behind him and pointed to one of the monitor screens.

"What is it? What do you see," asked Tseng, leaning forward in his seat to get a better view.

"Here, zoom in closer. I saw a shadow make its' way across this room right here," Elena said, pointing to one of the monitor screens. "I'm sure I saw something..."

"Let's take a closer look," Tseng said, before taking control of a few more buttons and angling the camera better and zooming in. When the picture focused and cleared, what they saw was...

"Ugh, what a total letdown," Elena groaned, as a slightly pixelated image of Reno and Rude came into frame. "I should have known it would be those two jackasses."

Tseng quietly smirked to himself, a small smile on his lips. "It looks like they're making their way down to Hojo's science laboratories."

"You think they found something?" Elena asked.

"I don't know," Tseng squinted, trying to get a better view on the small monitor screen. "They seem to be closely inspecting something, like they're following a trail..."

"Looks like the intruder might have just led us right to them," Elena clutched her fist in victory.

"Let me see if I can switch one of the cameras over to get a view of the labs," Tseng said, before quickly pressing in a few buttons on the console. "This...should be it. We should get a view of our intruder here, if that's where they headed."

Tseng and Elena leaned closer, examining the small pixelated screen. The image captured a view of Hojo's laboratory. Even from the screen, it seemed to send an icy, coldness through Tseng and Elena. The lab looked lonely and cold, filled with incubators, containment pods, tables and bookshelves filled with knowledge and half-completed experiments of a mad-man with wicked ideas and insane intentions.

"This is where it was reported that something broke in, right?" Elena asked, glancing again at the screen. "They should be here, but...there's nothing."

"Hm, but there is...something strange," Tseng said, pointing up to one of the screens. "One of those incubators, it's turned on. It seems to be functioning as if it was recently used...or is being used. It shouldn't be."

"Huh? Where is it?" Elena said, leaning forward to get a better view, just as the camera's angle quickly switched to the entrance of the laboratory.

Tseng cursed, "Wait til the camera goes back around to it."

Tseng and Elena waited in anxious silence for the monitor to go back to the main part of the lab, and when it did, they both jolted back.

Sephiroth.

The evil man, the merciless demon with long white hair and a black cape, stood in the center of the laboratory, looking directly up towards the security camera, as if staring directly into Elena and Tseng's eyes. An evil smirk formed across his face, as if he knew that the two were spying on him.

An icy cold chill raced up Elena's spine, "It's...it's r-really-"

"Sephiroth," Tseng breathed out. "He's here...but how?"

From the monitor, the two watched in unspoken horror as the caped man turned away from the camera and made his way towards the functioning incubator. He turned back to face them once more and with a sickening smile on his face, lifted a sole finger up to his lips, as if to silence them.

Tseng and Elena knew then...Sephiroth was more than aware of their presence and were now uncertain; who was really spying on who?

Sephiroth turned from them and stepped inside the incubator, the light from within blinding the surveillance camera from spotting his form. Soon, it didn't matter, as the entire camera's focus soon began to blur and distort, before blinking out and shutting off altogether.

The two remained in silence, before it was broken by the blonde.

"What the hell was that?" Elena said, repeating louder. "What the hell was that?!"

"You know what it was. Sephiroth," Tseng replied back.

"I know, but how?" Elena crossed her arms, pacing back and forth. "Cloud and his group of annoying friends defeated him. Multiple times! This doesn't make any sense..."

"I'm sure there's something going on here that we don't understand..." Tseng said, placing a finger on his chin. "Something isn't right here."

"Obviously! Something's very, VERY wrong!" Elena placed her hands on her hips, "And, please tell me, how the hell are you staying so calm right now? We are in a building with a madman who's probably going to try and kill us all...Oh, no..."

"What?" Tseng looked back at her in concern.

She looked down at him, fear in her eyes. "Reno and Rude...they're heading towards the science floor. They're heading right to Sephiroth!"

"&%$#" Tseng cursed again in realization. He quickly got up from his seat, "We have to go! We've got to get to them before it's too late!"

* * *

Reno and Rude made their way down the staircase that led towards the Science Department floor. While navigating down the many floors of the building, they came across a set of peculiar footprints, just like Reno was hoping for. Now, he only hoped that this clue trail would lead him right up to the intruder and that they'd be quick work to take care of. The two men quickly followed after the trail of footprints.

While stepping out into the open space of the laboratory floor, the two men caught wind of a particularly rancid smell.

"Phew! What the hell is that?" Reno questioned, trying to cover his nose and breathe out through his mouth.

The smell was truly something horrific, like rotting flesh and blood strewn about a street gutter. It made one's stomach twist with the threat of choking on the breath in their very lungs. Reno tried to continue forward, but the stench was almost so overpowering that he couldn't focus.

"Ughm I've smelled better piles of trash in the dirtiest slums before." He repeated again, "Seriously, what the hell is that?"

"It reminds me of death," said Rude.

"So comforting," Reno replied.

The two men made their way through the laboratory grounds, each checking the indivdual office rooms that led towards the main core of the floor where Hojo had done most of his work. Reno reached for one of the office doors, his hand nervously trembling as he did so. When he grasped the knob, he turned it and heard a slight 'click', before slowly pushing the door open. He stepped inside, only to discover that the only thing that took up space in the room was a cluttered desk and a bookshelf.

'Is that really all that's in here?' Reno let out a sigh, before he heard a noise come from behind him. He heard the movement, something coming closer, approaching the door, about to enter the room. Reno could feel his bottom lip quivering, as he tried to mask his fear and keep his composure. 'Kill...or be killed.'

Reno lunged for the open doorway and punched Rude in the face.

Rude was taken aback, clutching his now sore nose. Although a hard hit, he seemed utterly unfazed. "Seriously, what the hell."

Reno grimaced, showing off an expression that was a mixture of shock, relief and amusement. "Sorry, man. I thought you were something else..." He let out a nervous laugh, as all Rude did was adjust his now crooked glasses.

"Come on," Rude cocked his head at his friend, pointing in the direction that led towards the main lab.

As they made their way to the lab, the stomach-churning stench grew ever stronger, like they were moving through a haze of it. A single, dismal blue flickering plank of fluorescent light was the only source that illuminated the cold level of the building.

The two men continued down the corridor that looped around to the specimen containment bay, where incubators and containment pods lined the floor in a haphazard display of Hojo's insane thirst for psychotic discoveries. Reno and Rude heard something just up ahead, something that called all of their attention.

"What is that..." Reno asked.

Rude took a moment to listen carefully, "It sounds like something...exhaling."

As they approached the sound, they noticed that their shoes had stuck to the cold, metal ground of the laboratory floor. It was only a second later before Reno found himself slipping, catching himself when his hands hit the ground.

"What the hell?" Reno regrouped and stood, but to his horror, saw the red blood that had now stained his hands. He looked down and at his and Rude's feet looked like what was a pile of rotten flesh in a pool of blood.

"I think I'm gonna be sick..." Reno said, almost covering his mouth with his hands, but immediately pulling them away when he remembered the dark blood that covered them.

"We don't have time for that. Look alive," Rude called out to Reno, pointing in the direction of one of the incubators at the far end of the lab.

The incubator shook and sputtered. The blue light from within flickered and pulsed, as something moved about within it, basked in the energy that encircled around the being.

"What's that?" Reno asked.

"I believe that...is our target."

The accelerating sound of buzzing came from within the incubator, as the energy within grew stronger. The figure within moved about, offering Reno and Rude a quick glance in-between the passing rays of energy.

Reno's eyes widened, "Sephiroth...?"

Just as soon as the redhead spotted the man, the black-caped man's head turned towards him, offering an evil grin. In a flash, Sephiroth was gone and in his place was an entirely different being. The creature was much larger, to the point where its' flesh pressed up against the incubator glass, cracking it open. The creature had skin that was so pale it almost looked blue, strange otherworldly growths growing from its' appendages, claws where it's hands should be and red veins that trickled down within the surface of its' skin. It had bizarrely womanly qualities, accentuated by the curves of its' body and the long wispy hair that floated around it. The creature opened her eyes, an eerie yellow glowing within them.

To some, she might have been considered a beautiful goddess, a benevolent deity, but that was the farthest thing from the truth. This was an extraterrestrial demon that was set on destroying the planet and all the life on it.

"That's...that's..." Reno sputtered, his eyes growing wider, "...Jenova."

The creature let out a wail, as the glass tubing of the containment pod exploded out, sending shards of glass flying across the room. The pod sparked and fizzled as the otherworldly creature emerged from the tube, almost slithering forth like some caecilian creature.

Reno and Rude slowly backed away from the lab as the being approached. The bald man glanced towards his friend, "Think we can take it?"

Reno rolled his eyes and shook his head, "Yeah right, this looks like a job for Strife. What the freakin' luck I'm having today, am I right?"

Jenova caught sight of the two men and let out a feminine giggle, which, coming from this creature, seemed all the more eerie, spine-crawling and unnatural. It was the first encounter Reno and Rude had ever had with Jenova and from the that one laugh, they were already wanting to forget this confrontation.

"Well, if this thing is looking for a fight, better give it what it wants," Reno said, before charging towards Jenova, a closed fist leading towards the being's face. Jenova cast out one of her arms and caught Reno in midair. With a simple flick of her wrist, Reno was sent flying into the hard wall.

Reno lifted his head, as if the weight of the world had suddenly fallen on top of him.

'Damn, tomorrow's hangover's gonna be a bitch.'

Reno tried to lift his body from the cold metal floor, but the move that Jenova had given him seemed to knock the wind right out of him. Jenova had let out another eerie laugh, seeing the two opponents as no match for her. Reno slowly crept to his feet, wincing in pain from the spasms that occurred from the movements of his sore muscles. He brought his hand to his lips, wiping away the blood that he could taste coming fromthe corner of his mouth.

'This thing doesn't know when to quit, does she?' Reno thought to himself.

When Rude had seen his accomplice charge towards the creature, only to end up blasted into a wall, he knew much better than to try and take this powerful being on directly. Still, Rude prepared himself in a stance, raising his fists to his chest, his only form of defense in case Jenova was to attack again.

Jenova simply let out a childish giggle, seeing a mere human think that they would be able to defeat her.

When Reno had successfully gotten back onto his feet, he carefully limped his way over to where Rude was standing.

"How many times has Strife kicked your ass already? You need it from us, too?" Reno snarled.

Jenova menacingly approached the two men, a dark glare descending down on the two men. When Reno had stared into the eyes of Jenova, he could feel a cold, heartlessness. He looked into the creature's eyes and beyond the yellow glow, saw only darkness - something very telling of what existed within her being.

"You really think you are a match for me," Jenova finally spoke, almost hissing out at them as she taunted. "I've spent hundreds of years destroying the likes of your kind and no one has been able to kill me...and it certainly won't be either of you."

Reno gritted through his teeth, "How the hell did you come back!? I thought Cloud and the others destroyed you?"

"Hmph, how foolish of you to think so," Jenova laughed. "They've destroyed many parts of me, but they didn't finish the job. A small part of me still survived and took shelter deep within the crater in the north. To my luck, a wandering traveler found his way into my home and, while he made the most dreadful end, he made the perfect vessel to sustain me. I entered into his pitiful, disgusting human form and took hold of him..."

"Yeah, that's disgusting," Reno said.

Jenova continued, "His body lasted me long enough to travel all the way from the crater to this building, where I knew that fool Hojo had some powerful enough equipment to help me regain myself fully. So, I clawed my way out of that weak, useless man's body and found myself here..." She laughed, placing one of her hands down on the shattered incubator. "It seems humans do have some use, they make perfect vessels and are so easily controlled."

Reno shook his head, "You're a lunatic. You're the one that was responsible for that body the president found. You...you broke in here to use Hojo's equipment to make you...more powerful?"

Jenova glanced down at her fully regained form, "Yes, and it worked wonderfully. I can feel my powers returning, coursing through my veins. Why, if it hadn't been for Hojo and Shinra investing in these experiments that greatly increase a being's abilities, none of this would have been possible."

Reno grunted out.

Jenova smiled darkly, taking a step closer to the two men. "Now, with myself fully intact once more, I can resume what I had planned when I came to this planet over two-thousand years ago..."

Rude decided to make a quick dash towards the creature, which he had ultimately regretted mere moments later, when he had found himself being lifted and tossed back into one of the wooden crates in the corner of the room.

Just as Rude was tossed away, Reno saw the opportunity to try and attack Jenova. He moved forward to the creature, but was instantly incapacitated when Jenova thrust her hand out, gripping the man tightly around the throat. She lifted him up off the ground with ease, her giggle echoing as Reno kicked and struggled to break free.

Reno tossed himself back and forth, struggling to breathe. He choked out, "Why? Why are...you doing this!? What...do you want?!"

Jenova laughed, darkly. "I found myself falling to this pitiful realm hundreds of years ago and since then, since discovering how horrible and useless humans could be, I've wanted nothing more than to wipe mankind from existence and this entire Planet with it. I was an outsider...and the world spat me back out. I disguised myself to befriend the Cetra, the very 'protectors' of the Planet, and when the time was right, I took out nearly all of them."

Reno kicked and struggled further.

"I destroyed nearly all the Cetra, but it wasn't enough...soon mankind took over, they multiplied and expanded and explored. And yet again, I was an outsider left to see mankind thanklessly ruin their own planet. I will never rest until I've cleansed this world of all mankind."

"Why!?" Reno struggled, losing his breath. "What did the Cetra do to you?! What did humans do!?"

Jenova paused, an unusual glare in her eye. Her lip trembled and she squeezed Reno's throat tighter, "They destroyed me."

Jenova's hand squeezed tighter, ready to snap Reno's neck. He felt his air running out, his gasps for breath shortening, as he tried to punch and kick his way out of the tight grasp. She smiled wickedly down at him, "Now, I'm going to return their punishment and destroy them all...starting with you."

Rude emerged from behind the crate and carefully tried to make his way over to Jenova, but found that almost every one of his actions would have ended with him face-down on the floor.

Although he was losing breath, Reno laughed, "You can kill me, but you'll still have Cloud the others to deal with."

Jenova only tightened her grip, laughing menacingly, "Which reminds me, after I'm finished with you, I suppose he'll have to be next..."

"He won't be!"

A shot was heard, as a splatter of dark blood protruded from the arm that went to Reno's neck. Jenova writhed in pain, her eyes widening as she loosened her grip on Reno.

Reno fell to the floor, struggling to regain his breath. When he looked to the side, just behind Rude, he saw Elena and Tseng standing there. Tseng pointed a gun towards the creature., a successful smirk on his face.

Reno brought out his iron rod and gave Jenova a swift hit directly across the jaw. Rude seized the opportunity to ambush Jenova, aiming one of his fists directly at her chest, following his opposing fist directly towards the creature's head.

Jenova reeled back from the combo hit that she had just received from Rude. "And here I thought I was going to be merciful and kill you all quickly..."

Just as Reno and Rude had planned to initiate an attack together, one of Jenova's hands shot forth, sending the two men flying backwards, colliding with Tseng and Elena,sending all four of the Turks to the floor. Jenova approached the four, almost eerily gliding along the cold floor towards them.

When Jenova went to attack them, she found her hands tembling, shaking violently as her powers failed her. She tried again, but nothing. She let out a frustrated growl.

Reno smirked, "Seems like you need more time to get yourself together. Your powers are still half-assed." He stood to his feet, the other Turks standing behind him, getting into a battle stance to fight the creature. "And with your power still not entirely on your side, that means we can kick your ass right here and now."

Jenova sneered, her face twisting in anger. She snarled like an animal, "This isn't over. Your day of reckoning will be upon you and I'll kill all of you...I'll kill everyone with the destruction of this planet!"

With a laugh, Jenova waved her hand and a powerful impulse shot forth. The four Turks felt a great force almost physically pass through them, sending them to the ground and wiping them of their energy. When the four looked up, Jenova was gone.

There was a moment of complete silence, as the four Turks slowly recuperated, getting back on their feet.

"Thanks for coming to the rescue," Reno turned to Elena and Tseng. "I don't think I would have made it out of there alive."

Elena nodded, "Don't mention it. We were watching from the surveillance cameras. We knew the two of you would run into some trouble when we saw Sephiroth appear."

Reno nodded, "Yeah, we saw Sephiroth for a brief moment, too, but he was never here at all. It was all Jenova the whole time. She was playing with our minds, toying with us. From what I hear, she tends to do that."

"Bitch," Elena sneered.

"Yeah, well, just wait til I tell you everything Jenova had to do to regenerate herself," Reno smirked. 'I think 'bitch' will be an understatement for her."

Tseng thought for a long moment before speaking, "How serious do you think Jenova is this time? She's been around for hundreds of years and hasn't been successful. What makes this time different?"

Reno shook his head, "I don't know, but whatever it is she's up to, I don't like it. If it's not the world she's trying to destroy, then it's peoples' lives instead. I think she's absolutely serious at wanting to destroy the world and everyone in it. She's a problem and she needs to be taken care of."

Elena chimed in, "What do you think Rufus is going to say? Do you think he'll take it out on us that Jenova got away?"

Tseng shook his head, "No. I don't think so. Rufus knew that what we were up against was dangerous, but not something as threatening as Jenova. If anything, I think he deserves to have an accurate report of the he learns of Jenova's resurgence, he'll know what next steps to take."

Reno placed a finger on his chin, unable to shake the uneasy feeling within him. "This isn't good..."

"What is it?" Elena asked.

"There's just something about Jenova's threat. It feels unmistakably dangerous this time, like no amount of Holy or white magic is enough to fight her," Reno thought out loud.

"And with all the Cetra gone, is there anyone even powerful enough to stop her now?" Tseng asked.

"I don't know," Reno shook his head. "But whatever Jenova has in store for the planet, it won't be good...for anyone."

* * *

It had been a few hours since Cloud and Denzel had returned from the church and it was already late into the evening, so late it was practically the earliest hours of the morning.

Cloud sat at the desk in his room, signing and filing a pile of delivery paperwork that he had put off doing. Throwing himself into his work at least made his days seem to go by and make life seem a little less burdened, even if it meant late nights and constant traveling, neither of which Cloud really seemed to mind.

The low, yellow warmth from the desk lamp caused a tired yawn to emerge from the blonde, as he ran a hand through his spiky hair. He stared at the piles of paperwork on his desk, already feeling the circles that were going to appear under his eyes come the morning. It were small moments like this where, even if it was just a small part of him, he longed to be traveling the planet again on some journey - to take on some brute force alongside Barret and Tifa, to face fiends on the road with Nanaki, Cid and Vincent, to even chase after Yuffie who'd take all their Materia.

But mostly, to travel the world alongside Aerith again. To see her smile and to hear her laugh, to be there to see her excitement, her concerns and her love for the planet she adored as she traveled wherever they'd go. To see her reaction to new places, new foods, new sights and sounds, new everything. Seeing the world the way she saw it for the first time, it was like he was seeing it for the first time all over again, too.

He stared down at the new flower he kept at his desk, the one he found right outside of Aerith's church - the very flower he had purchased from her on the winter night years ago.

Cloud shook his head and snapped himself out of his longing fantasy. Things couldn't go back to the way that they were. He could only keep moving forward.

He lightly slapped himself on the cheek in a feeble attempt to wake himself up and continue his paperwork. He heard the wooden door to his room quietly creak up and looked to the side to see Barret peering in.

"Yo Spike, you good?"

Cloud gave Barret a reassuring nod. "Yeah. How was everything around here tonight?"

"Quiet. Marlene was bein' real funny about you and Denzel goin' off on your bike, but like hell I'd let you take her on that thing," Barret smirked.

"Sorry," Cloud's lips lightly formed into a smile. "Denzel and I, we...just understand one another. I think it's good that we have each other to talk to."

"Man, don't got to apologize for that," Barret smiled and looked down at the various yellow and white carnations that were scattered around Cloud's desk. "You take another trip out to the flower fields today?"

Cloud nodded, looking over to the flowers, "I did. I've been going there every day in-between my deliveries."

Barret nodded, "You feel her there, doncha?"

"Yeah," he said, looking back up at him. "I can. It's like an entirely different world there. It's a part of this world, but it's not. It's like a fantasy, but still very real. I...I can't describe it, she can say it much better than I can..."

"I don't doubt it," Barret laughed. "Well, you tell Aer I'm missin' her, too. I'd like a visit from her every now and then, too."

"Will do," Cloud nodded. "I'll be going back tomorrow. I want to see her everyday...if I can."

"You don't got to explain it to me, Spike,' Barret placed a hand on the blonde's shoulder. "If I had a place in this world where I could see my Eleanor every day, I'm bettin' that place would be my whole damn world. Marlene's, too."

To Barret, his daughter was his happiness and his entire world. While she was not his own daughter, he had watched her ever since she was a baby and adopted her, raising her as if she was his own. Barret felt as though Marlene would always be his little girl, regardless of blood.

Barret felt sympathy for Cloud. He understood how Cloud had felt that he had let people down and was not able to protect the ones that meant the most to him. He knew the feeling of convincing himself that he was a failure at one point in his life and that, if he knew what he had known now; he would have done things entirely different.

At the beginning, when Cloud and Barret first started working in AVALANCHE together, the two were never really close, nor did they happen to get along often. Deep beneath Barret's burly stature, there was actually a man who cared about the planet and its' people. There was a softness deep within the rough exterior.

Barret opposed Cloud's views on life, often criticizing the soldier on how he could be so cold and unaffected by the problems of the world, only caring about the money he would make from his missions.

But as the two continued to learn more about each other over the next few years, they had learned to respect one another. Two different people, once very opposing towards their own views on the world, brought closer because of the pain and loss that they had both experienced. They had developed an understanding for one another. While Barret may have criticized Cloud at any chance that he got, Cloud knew that there was still a lot of respect between them.

Barret continued, "Well, I'm glad to see you doin' better, Spike. I wouldn't want to have to kick your dumbass again!" And in an instant, the Barret that Cloud recognized was back again.

"Again? You've never kicked my ass at all." Cloud replied with a serious expression on his face that grew into a small smile

"And let's keep it that way." Barret gave Cloud a hard pat on the back, before leaving the room, closing the door behind him.

Cloud sat at his desk for a moment, before turning back to his pile of delivery paperwork. The steady ticking of the clock on his desk caught his attention. It was nearly one in the morning and, while he had every intention of completing his delivery files that night, sleep sounded significantly better right then. He arranged all of the papers in a small pile on his desk, promising himself that he would catch up with all of his work by tomorrow.

He lifted himself out of his chair and flipped the desk light off. Cloud grabbed the rim of his dark blue vest and lifted it above his head, before he went to climb into bed. He pulled the covers up over himself and his body sank into the slightly uncomfortable, flimsy mattress beneath him. Cloud started to enjoy the feeling of sinking into sleep, until...

Cloud's phone started to go off on his desk.

"Ugh...dammit..."

Cloud was barely able to lift his head up, blindly reaching through the darkness for his vibrating phone. Once he had obtained the item, Cloud flipped it open and lifted it to his ear.

"Yeah?" he said, a bit more agitated than he had intended to sound.

" _Hey Cloud, it's Reno_."

"Reno, what do you want? Do you know how late it is?"

" _Cloud, listen, we got bigger problems than you not getting your beauty rest, like say, some terrifying extraterrestrial being that's deadest on destroying the planet_."

Cloud quickly realized that Reno was talking about Jenova, but at this late hour of the night, he was not entirely sure if Reno was kidding or not. He could never really determine when Reno was being sarcastic or not, which was especially difficult when Reno practically bled sarcasm.

"Are you joking? You're not funny. Goodnight."

" _Strife! I'm not kidding! Me and the others just got our asses whooped by that thing_!"

"Okay...so what do you want me to do about this now?" Cloud sat up in bed.

" _Well, uhhh...the others are about to tell Rufus what happened, but I thought that we could use some re-enforcement if we're going up against that thing. You did beat that thing like...ten times already, right?_ "

Cloud sighed, "Where are you now?"

" _At the base of Shinra Headquarters, planning on heading down towards Wallmarket_."

"Seriously?" At this hour, the idea of driving out of Edge, back to Midgar and going to a run-down, abandoned Wallmarket made Cloud want to hang up the phone, crash back into his bed and say to hell with whatever threat Jenova was posing.

But Cloud knew that he couldn't exactly do that. Not if a threat as serious as Jenova was real.

Cloud sighed and scratched a hand through his hair, "Fine. I'll head out now. I'll be there as soon as I can."

" _Good. I'll explain the rest when you get here. There's a lot to say. I'll be waiting in Wallmarket_."

Cloud flipped his phone shutand lifted himself off of the bed. "So much for sleep."

He grabbed his vest and threw it back on. He quickly gathered a few pieces of armor that were scattered about his room and finally, grabbed his Buster Sword.

Cloud thought about telling Barret and Tifa what he had just heard from Reno about the potential of a new threat, but he hesitated.

He stared at the new, blossomed flower on his desk. 'There's too much to lose. I already lost you..'

He didn't want Barret and Tifa to get involved with his burdens yet again. They had children to look after, there was a bar to run, they had their own lives to protect. Could he really lay down another burden on their shoulders when there was more that could be lost against such a serious opponent? This was his fight and he was going to face it alone.

Or with Reno. But he preferred it being alone if that was the case.

Cloud quietly crept out of his room, sword and armor in tow and proceeded down the stairs. He left the bar and went to his motorbike, where he attached the sword into the weapon rack of the vehicle and got onto the seat. He powered up the engine and sped off down the street, heading towards the ruins of Midgar in the dead of night.

* * *

Tseng, Elena and Rude were outside the entrance of the Shinra Headquarters, filling their former president, Rufus, on the confrontation that happened with Jenova shortly beforehand.

"So, Jenova was the one responsible for the death of that man?" Rufus questioned. "That explains the body I found."

"Yes, sir," Tseng replied.

"It's amazing how that...creature...went to such lengths to restore herself," said Elena.

"She'd spent some time in the science facility those few years ago," Rufus acknowledged. "Surely she would have known that the Shinra had the necessary equipment to accomplish such a feat."

"It won't be easy to take her out if she's as powerful as she claims herself to be," said Tseng.

"Oh, she's certainly powerful," Rufus said. "Had I known the threat was as serious as Jenova, I would have called for more serious re-enforcements. The former president examined the bruises that had formed on Rude's face after the altercation.

"If she can even be stopped at all..." Elena sighed.

Rufus smirked and shook his head, "We'll stop her. She might be stronger than a mere human could be, but the Shinra still have resources far greater that could be used to fight her. If it's a fight she wants, we're not going to let her win so easily."

Elena turned to him, an eyebrow raised, "So, does this mean we're with the good guys this time?"

Rufus stalled for a moment, before closing his eyes, "We...are aligned with them at best. They've faced Jenova before, surely they wouldn't mind helping out once more. Besides, I have my own reasons for wanting to be rid of that creature. If that means playing as the good guys for a little while, then that's what we'll have to do."

Elena, Tseng and Rude all nodded in silent response.

Rufus looked around the group, his brow furrowing, "Where's Reno?"

"He's made his way off to Wallmarket," Rude replied.

Tseng continued, "Apparently, he's trying to track down Jenova. After she escaped, he said he caught word of a lead that brought him all the way down to Wallmarket. He's been trying to get a hold of her ever since, but, if he does find her, I don't know if he'll be lucky enough to survive this encounter."

Elena continued, "Yeah. He told me that he was going to try and get Cloud to join him and fight, too. Whether or not that spiky idiot actually shows up to help Reno is an entirely different story."

Rufus pondered the situation with a smirk, "We'll wait and see what becomes of Reno. We'll take care of Jenova before she can do any real damage."

Elena, Tseng and Rude gave Rufus a puzzled, questioning look. "You sound so confident."

"I should be," laughed Rufus. "I have a special weapon in store for Jenova that'll do far more than just destroy her. In a short time, this world is going to be changed yet again. I'd say it's time to get started."

* * *

It was already late into the night when Cloud, although reluctantly, found himself on his motorcycle, speeding down the main highway that led away from Edge and went to the ruins of Midgar. As the only traveler on the road at this hour, it made the journey quick and effortless. He'd spend many days and nights traveling on his own and was used to the loneliness of it all, not that it always necessarily bothered him. He'd usually take this same trip to return to Midgar, but only to visit Aerith's church routinely. Tonight was a different story.

He was a wandering man, a traveler that seemed so deadest on where he was going that it was though he could disappear from sight in an instant.

It wasn't long before the long road in front of Cloud stretched to the eternally open gates of Midgar. As he passed by, a sole electrical bulb flickered across the 'Midgar' sign that was placed just aside the sliding metal gate. The only thing that really seemed to populate this place nowadays was the usual set of fiends that would prowl through, but they'd be easy work for the blonde fighter if a battle was to ensue.

For the second time that night, Cloud drove past the church, which seemed untouched and just as sacred even when the rest of Midgar looked as if it had fallen to hell. The sight of the ancient sanctum always brought a warmth to his heart, as it reminded him of the first time he and Aerith had become acquainted with one another. While it wasn't the first time they had 'met', it was in that sacred place where they first took the steps to knowing each other and Cloud held those memories engraved in his heart.

He felt his lips tug upwards when he felt as if Aerith had just embraced him, her gentle warmth wrapping around his waist, as if to tell him that she remembered those moments fondly, too. It was small moments like this that always happened, where he felt her there traveling alongside him wherever he went, as if she was sharing her memories with him and they reflected in his heart.

Cloud continued past the church and made his way through the sectors, passing by the old slums of where Aerith and her adoptive mother, Elmyra, used to live and made his way into the next sector which seemed to be a massive construction zone left for a project that seemed abandoned over a decade ago.

It wasn't long before he made his way through the construction site and drove through the gates to Green Park, an old playground on the edge of that sector, consisting of a few swingsets and a moogle slide. It was the only place where the children of Midgar to go play, even though it wasn't the safest by any means. Cloud rolled to a stop and hopped off his motorcycle.

"I can't believe it's still here," Cloud mumbled to himself, stepping closer into the park.

The park seemed a bit of a mess even before the destruction of the plate that crushed Sector Seven, but even now after Meteorfall, Cloud was surprised how well the playground held up. It was cluttered with debris and tangled heaps of metal, but there was a fondness about this place that brought him back to the time he and Aerith had a quick date there, where they talked and rested for just a short while, before being thrust into a Wallmarket adventure Cloud would have much rather forgotten about.

He looked up at the moogle slide, remembering when he and Aerith sat there, shoulder to shoulder, his hand just faintly resting right against hers as they began to build a world together. He smiled fondly to himself for a moment, before it disappeared when he heard the sound of Reno's voice.

"Took you long enough," said Reno.

"Sorry I didn't jump at the opportunity to help the likes of you this early in the morning," Cloud shot back.

Reno waved him off and turned his back to the playground, making his way towards Wallmarket.

Cloud shook his head in annoyance as he quickly trailed after the redhead. "Can we just cut to the chase? You called me down here to help, right? Do you know where Jenova is? How did she come back in the first place?"

"Well, for starters, I don't think she was ever fully gone..." Reno started, as he began to tell Cloud all about his encounter with the otherworldly creature in the Shinra Headquarters.

Cloud listened as Reno told him everything he dreaded was true. He didn't feel cut out to go against an enemy of this power. While he missed the adventures and journey alongside his friends, the idea of going up against an enemy that could control and manipulate him, one that played a part in taking away someone so precious to him, it made his blood boil and his heart twist. If her reappearance was true, he didn't know how he could face Jenova again without killing her on the spot.

"And that's the gist of it, more or less," Reno concluded. "She's not playin' around this time, either. Whatever she's got cooking up, it's a recipe for wiping out all of humankind on this planet."

"Well, I'm not going to let it get to that," said Cloud. "We fought her once, we can take her again."

Reno smirked, "Yeah, well, just make sure you finish the job this time and kill that bitch. So, you really think you can kill her this time?"

"I don't know, but if she's really out there, I'll at least try to put a stop to her," he said.

"Easier said than done. That thing lived without her head attached to her body," Reno sneered in disgust. "I think it'll take a little bit more than a bullet to the head to get rid of her."

"Well, what's the solution then?" Cloud asked, turning back to him. "Anything can be destroyed. There has to be someway to get rid of her for good. I'm going to find it, whatever it is."

With his sword strapped against his back, Cloud walked into Wallmarket alongside Reno. Unlike before, the bustling street marketplace was met with an uneasy silence and lonesomeness. Like the rest of Midgar, the place was left abandoned, nothing but a place lost to time. Carts were overturned, the market stores were permanently closed, even the deceased Don Corneo's mansion at the back of the marketplace was practically torn down now.

Cloud searched the area, "You said you got a lead that placed Jenova down here?"

"Mhm," Reno nodded, "Some Shinra surveillance footage I played back when Tseng got the damn thing working again. Turns out the Headquarters building wasn't the only thing Shinra was keeping en eye on. They had surveillance camers secretly placed all over the sectors..."

Cloud raised an eyebrow and crossed his arms, "I don't find that too surprising, honestly."

"Yeah, well, guess we had some good use for 'em, cuz I found some footage of a shot that showed Jenova heading down this way. Why she'd want to come to Wallmarket, though? I have no idea..."

"Well, we'll worry about questions later. Right now, let's just try and find her before she does anything else," said Cloud.

"Then, let's get this show on the road and find ourselves an alien!"

The two men continued their search through the empty, ram-shackled streets of the fallen market. As Reno made his way over to the Honeybee Inn, he inspected the building where even the most unsavory of people went to be entertained in the most unsavory ways. "Nope, don't think she came down this way."

Cloud sighed and rolled his eyes, mumbling to himself, "You'll find many scary things in that place, but an alien creature is not one of them."

Reno turned to Cloud, "Hey, isn't this one of the places where you went to get decked out?"

The blonde turned back with a questioning eyebrow, "I...I don't know what you're talking about."

"Oh, sure you do," smiled Reno. "Isn't this where they decked you out in all that make-up, so you'd be more convincing as a woma-"

"Shut up," Cloud cut Reno of. "I'd like to see you try and do better. Seriously."

Reno smirked and crossed his arms, "Well, you got balls for doin' it, that's for damn sure."

"Exactly, so let's just drop it, okay?" Cloud said, trying to block the memories of him dressing up as a woman or seducing Don Corneo out of his head, as they were easily the most awkward memories he'd ever recalled. Somehow, Aerith had managed to convince him to go along with her idea and he followed through so easily. If it hadn't been for her, the two of them probably never would have went after Tifa in the Don's mansion as successfully as they did.

Cloud could only chalk it up to Aerith doing what she did best - bringing him out of his shell, making him strike forth and take risks and being the one to give him the gentle push of certainty he always needed. 'Honestly, as embarrassing as it was and will always be, I guess...a little part of me had fun doing the whole thing. I know Aerith definitely had fun...at my expense,' Cloud thought to himself, with a devilish smirk.

The two men continued to make their way through the market. Cloud walked past the old diner that was at the heart of Wallmarket. He peeked his head inside the open door and peered in. Nothing out of the ordinary there, but the place hadn't been opened in years. The kitchen at the back was dark and there were numerous bar stools lined up at the diner counter that were already collecting years of dust.

Cloud recalled with a smile that time when he and Aerith sat at those bar stools on their trip here. They split a 'Korean BBQ Plate', as the menu had called it, and as they enjoyed their food, the two of them spent a long while just simply talking to one another in content, their bond deepening. He recalled the sort of sparkle in her eyes when she spoke to him and the way it made his heart soar. He couldn't really even understand it all at the time when so much was happening back then, but he understood fully now.

He was taken out of his thoughts again by Reno. "Found it!"

Cloud turned around to see Reno heading towards the old items and libations store at the far end of the market. "Reno, did you find something?"

"Hell yeah, Strife," Reno leaned down and picked up an unopened, fully contained bottle of liquor that was left discarded outside of the shop.

Cloud rolled his eyes, "Okay, now is not the time to have a drink. Besides, I still think your working through the drinks you had earlier."

"Why the hell not?" Reno popped open the bottle, "If we're gonna be facing Jenova and probably get our asses kicked, I'm not going to do it sober. Especially not for a second ass-kicking on one night."

Cloud grabbed the bottle from Reno and tossed it over his shoulder. "I really don't care. We are supposed to be here to look for Jenova, not having drinks."

"Aw, come on, Strife! It won't do anything bad for us. It'll make us more aggressive when we fight her! Or...maybe. it'll make it less painful when she kill us..." Reno shrugged and gave a half-hearted smile.

Cloud crossed his arms and tried to understand the man's train of thought, but was lost in the process. He waved Rneo off and began to turn from him.

Reno sighed, "Ah, come on, Cloud. Don't be such a buzzkill, it's just one drink. Besides, a little liquor never hurt-"

A huge fiery blast erupted from the items shop and sent the two of them back. The two hit the ground hard, as they watched the shop erupt into a fiery inferno. Coming from within the smoke and flames, Cloud recognized Jenova's form instantly. She'd materialized through the fire and it brought back the terrible images of Sephiroth as his hometown of Nibelheim was destroyed, burnt up in flames. From beyond the immense heat and the imminent danger of the flames, Cloud could see the small flicker of an evil smile on Jenova's face.

The two men slowly stumbled to their feet, backing up a few steps from Jenova in case she was to attack again.

"You," Cloud grunted out, reaching for the hilt of his sword, a dangerous, hateful glare at the being before him, the one that was partly responsible for so much of his pain.

"I've been waiting for this day, Cloud Strife," Jenova hissed. "The day we were destined to meet yet again."

"Nothing about who or what you are was ever meant to interfere with my destiny," Cloud shot back.

"Ooh, how frightening," Jenova said in mock terror. "I see you've grown stronger since our last encounter, but how strong are you really?"

Cloud's eyes grew wide, as he saw Jenova send out her hand. Her fingertips danced around each other, as if she was maneuvering a marionette puppet, an evil grin spreading on her face. Cloud felt a sharp jolt of pain in his forehead, as if he'd been struck there by lightning. A cry erupted out of him then, sharp and shrill, as both of his hands rose to clutch the pounding that wracked his brain.

He felt his mind split in half, just like it had the previous times Jenova tried to control him, as if his being was getting torn to shreds and his thoughts and actions were being sent to eternal damnation. Every move he thought he could make was locked, he was beyond his own control and wasn't himself anymore.

Reno watched as Cloud's eyes glazed over, the ocean blue in them becoming hazy and dull. "What the hell are you doing to him!?"

Jenova laughed, "He's still so weak, even after all this time. My cells implanted within him still work to my advantage, even though he's grown stronger. He's still a puppet to me, just like he always was..."

"A...p-puppet," Reno muttered.

"Exactly, and because of his weakness, he'll do exactly as I command," Jenova laughed. "I tried to get him to hurt the one who held his heart so dearly and I was almost successful. Just imagine what I could get him to do to you."

Reno took a few steps back in fear.

Jenova smirked and turned to Cloud, "Kill him."

Without a word, Cloud turned to Reno, his face emotionless and still, as if he truly was a puppet. He menacingly began to advance towards Reno, his hand slowly starting to reach up for the hilt of his sword.

"Cloud! Snap out of it!" Reno begged, "This isn't you! You know you aren't a puppet."

"Kill him," Jenova repeated.

Cloud continued forward, each step closer putting Reno's life a little more at stake. He removed his sword and pointed it forward towards Reno.

"Cloud, come on, man!" Reno said, "Talk about a crappy day..."

"Do it now!" Jenova hissed.

Cloud went forward and pushed Reno down, the redhead falling on his back as Cloud towered over him. The blonde man raised his sword above his head, ready to strike Reno down.

"Yes, Cloud, do it..." Jenova beckoned at the back of his mind.

Cloud stalled for a moment, tightening his grip on his buster sword, but then he felt a warm glow in his heart, the same one he always felt when he thought of her. He felt a gentle reassurance, only something Aerith could give to him. It was like she was embracing him and using her light to push away the darkness that was now taking over him.

Jenova's eyes widened and she let out a gasp when she saw the Cetra's form appear for just a brief moment as she embraced Cloud, before fading away within a bright light that was far beyond her reach.

Slowly, his eyes refocused and returned to normal, his arms falling down as he lowered his sword.

Reno let out a sigh of relief, "Cloud..."

Cloud shook his head, "I...I'm sorry. She tried to control me again, but...it didn't work."

Jenova stared down at her hands, maneuvering her finger tips again as if trying to control Cloud some more, but it failed. She stared down at her hands and then back up at Cloud, "This...this is impossible."

Instead of the pain Cloud one felt, he felt the warmth in his heart grow even stronger, brighter than he'd ever felt it. It felt like it protected his entire being, like he could survive anything and face any challenge. In his heart, he heard her voice and he knew what he had to do.

Jenova gritted through her teeth, "No! You are a puppet! You feel nothing! Without me, you would be nothing!"

"I'm not nothing. I was _never_ nothing," Cloud said through trembling lips as he approached the evil creature before him. He thought about his closest friends, about his mother, Zack, Denzel, but more than anything, Aerith, as all the feelings within him swirled and mounted to the surface. "It looks like I'm not your puppet after all. I never was and I never will be. I feel more for what I cherish than you ever could!

"You are so certain," Jenova laughed.

"Whatever you're planning, I won't let you destroy any more lives," Cloud tightened his grip around his buster sword. "If it's a fight you want, I'll give it to you."

"Oh, now would I want that. That would interfere with what I have planned," Jenova said, extending her hand out as a small brown bottle materialized within.

"And what the hell is that and why the hell should we be interested in it," Reno asked.

"Oh, you shouldn't be. Not today anyway," Jenova scoffed and tossed her head back to the burning shop behind her. "I retrieved this special potion from the old shop there. I heard that this market was quite the place to find even the most uncommon items, but I'd never expect to come across something so powerful."

She opened the lit to the bottle, smoke materializing within, almost taking the form of slithering snakes as the wisps disappeared into the air. "Gorgon tears - a powerful serum that can halt anything, turning it to stone."

Reno shrugged and looked at Cloud, "So what? You're going to turn us into stone? Why the hell should we care about your stupid potion?"

Jenova waved her hand over the opened bottle, a small orb of liquid appearing from within, as it floated in the air above her palm. "Not just a potion, it's a part of a spell, one that no one has ever been able to accomplish. But I will."

"A spell?" Cloud sternly asked. "What kind of spell?"

"And why the hell do you think you'll finally be able to cast it if no one's ever done it before," Reno asked.

Jenova laughed, "Fools. I've learned a lesson since the last time I faced all of you and this time, I'm creating a spell with the very thing that could stop me finally out of the picture - a Cetra."

With a flick of her hand, the orb of liquid expanded and shot forth towards Cloud and Reno. The two men instantly froze in place, as a hazy aura formed over the two of them. Even though it was like they'd been turned to stone, they could still see and hear everything that was happening outside their bodies. They watched as Jenova approached them.

"This potion will work quite well it seems," Jenova smiled. "I could kill you right here and now, but where would the fun be in that? Once my plan is enacted, you'll all face a fate far worse than death."

Cloud stared Jenova in the eyes, coldly, with mounting hate.

Jenova sneered, "There's a problem coming to your Planet, one that only a Cetra can stop..." She laughed to herself and turned from them. She tossed a glance back to them, "Too bad there isn't one."

Within a moment, Jenova was gone from the Wallmarket. A short moment later, the stone serum had finally worn off and Cloud and Reno could finally feel the motion return to their body. They both dropped to their knees, feeling as though they'd just been holding their breath for minutes on end.

Cloud turned to Reno, his lips thin and an unusual look of sincerity towards the redhead. "Hey, sorry about before."

"Don't worry about it. You were able to stop yourself before anything bad happened anyway," Reno shrugged it off. "Besides, I think we have more things to worry about right now. What the hell was Jenova talking about? What spell is she trying to do?"

"I don't know, but if we don't do something about it, I feel like we'll find out what she's up to sooner or later," said Cloud as he scratched a hand through his hair.

"Guess this means another adventure is starting up then, huh?" asked Reno.

"Maybe. But I don't think our work is finished for tonight just yet," said Cloud.

"Ugh, seriously? I almost died twice and you want to go back for a third round?" Reno scoffed, "Yeah, I might sit this one out."

"Look, Jenova couldn't have gotten very far at all and we're going to have to try and find out what she's planning on doing. I say let's get a jump on things and try to go after her while she's near. When we find out what she's really after, it'll make it all the more easier to stop her."

Reno raised an eyebrow at the blonde, "So, you got a plan then?"

Cloud gave him a quick nod and went towards the entrance of Wallmarket without saying a word.

"Uh, Cloud? Hello?" Reno called out, "Hey, man, wait up! What's the plan?"

"Follow me," Cloud said quickly, leading Reno to his motorcycle.

"You really think we can get this thing going fast enough to catch up with that thing," asked Reno.

"Watch me," Cloud smirked.

"And I suppose you'll just be strapping me to the bumper then, huh?"

"No."

"Then what?"

* * *

"Why the hell did I even have to ask?"

Reno rolled his eyes as he sat on the seat of Cloud's motorcycle, holding onto the soldier's waist as they sped out of Wallmarket.

Cloud shot a look at over his shoulder, "Make sure you hold on tight, little guy. Could be a bumpy ride."

Reno squinted his eyes, "I'm going to kill you if we make it out of this alive."

Cloud sped the motorcycle down the streets of the sectors, quickly trailing Jenova and scanning anywhere the creature could have trailed off to. Just further up ahead, they could make out the silhouette of the creature in the distant ruins of the fallen sector. Cloud stepped on the gas and slowly began to close in on her. His grip on the handle of the motorcycle only tightened as the space between the two decreased.

At this moment, Jenova let out a loud snarl and sent out a fiery inferno out behind her. Cloud saw the fiery explosion coming straight ahead and steered the vehicle clear of the blast that exploded only a mere couple of feet behind them. It was a close call, but they escaped with their skins in tact.

"Damn! Watch it, man! I would like not to get turner into a burnt piece of toast today," Reno shouted.

At this point, Cloud was too focused on catching up to Jenova and stopping her. He continued to trail after her, as the creature let out another blast of power and magic. Cloud's ability to evade the blasts became increasingly more difficult as the creature's magical abilities became stronger and more frequent. Cloud tried to as skillfully evade and deflect the fiery infernos that propelled towards the motorcycle.

Jenova led the two towards the train tracks on the outskirts of the sector, the point where the highways and the train tracks intersected along the central pillar support system. The chase continued, as Cloud steered down the tracks, Reno continuously shouting at Cloud to watch where he was going. There was numerous cracks and small fires left in the wake of Jenova's destruction.

Jenova headed into one of the dark tunnels that the trains passed through and left Cloud to follow. As he had done so, the sound of Jenova's sickeningly sweet laugh filled the tunnel.

Not waiting another moment to spare, Cloud raced down the darkness of the passage, barely able to make out what was right in front of him. Suddenly, a faint light could be seen just a few dozens of feet up ahead. Several small flames flickering in the darkness. As Cloud and Reno sped down the passage approaching the sources of light, they noticed that the light were actually fragments of fiery orbs being sent their way from Jenova.

"$&&%," Reno cursed. "There's no escaping those blasts now! They're coming right towards us!"

"Damn," Cloud muttered. It was too late to slow down or turn back now. It was either get through this tunnel now or die trying.

The motorcylce sped past each of the fiery orbs as it raced against the tracks of the tunnel. As the two passed each orb, it let out a fiery explosion that continued to build and build. With each explosion, pillars and the sound structure of the tunnel began to collapse and break away, as the tunnel filled with fire and smoke. The heat was searing. The explosions shook and rattled the tunnel, but Cloud charged onward. Just up ahead,

Cloud could see the exit of the tunnel and a dim light from the highway lights on the other side. Cloud stepped his foot down on the gas. If he was a moment too late, he and Reno could have been dead. They broke free from the tunnel, just as the fiery orbs exploded, causing the entire maze of train tunnels to explode, collapsing to the ground below.

The two exited the tunnel and ended up on a train track adjacent right next to a highway bridge, Jenova standing right before them. The night sky was contrasted against the fiery embers that burned all around them. Reno almost felt like he had the opportunity to get off the motorcycle and run like hell, but he knew that Cloud would take action before he was ever even able to have the chance.

"Hold on tight. We're not letting her get away! We're putting an end to this," Cloud shouted, as the two charged directly at Jenova.

Cloud unsheathed his sword.

The two reached Jenova, who let out a fiery blast across the bridge. The force of the fiery eruptions forced Cloud, Reno and the motorcycle up into the air. They were sent flying down off the highway and plunging down deeper...deeper...and deeper until they would meet their fate hundreds of feet below.

Cloud expected to meet the ground with a hard impact, where he'd break every bone in his body, but instead, everything dissolved into white.

* * *

Brightness. The white light that surrounded him filled him with peace and content. Eternal happiness.

He found himself slipping further and further down and let himself do so. It wasn't long before he felt his back rest on something. It felt soft, almost like his body was drifting through this white space on a billowing cloud that carried him along the way.

His eyes remained shut as the feeling of unending peace finally came to him.

"Am I...am I dead?" He heard himself ask without even having to speak.

Something came from within the light before him, then. He saw a woman's hand stretch out towards him then. It reminded him of the hand that had offered him a flower on that night so long ago. Cloud smiled then, knowing exactly who it had belonged to.

Not even a moment later, the rest of Aerith's form came into view, as her eyes sparkled down at him, a beautiful smile on her face. Her hand outstretched towards him, as he lifted his own up to hers.

From around them, a beautiful field of flowers grew from within the whiteness and stretched out in vast field around them.

"I...I can finally be here with you, Aerith." He smiled up at her, "I've found you here...in my Promised Land."

Cloud stretched his hand up to meet hers and join her in this peaceful tranquility forevermore, where he'd enjoy eternal happiness with her always at his side.

Just as Cloud felt the warmth of her fingers interlace with his own, he...woke up.

* * *

Cloud groggily opened his eyes. His head was heavy and his body was covered in scars and bruises. He could barely keep his eyes open, but at the same time, couldn't fall asleep when he remembered what had last happened during the confrontation with Jenova that ended with him and Reno falling hundreds of feet of a highway.

When he finally took in his surroundings, he realized he was in a hospital room. It must have been in the early morning as the rest of the hospital seemed fairly quiet. Across the room from him, Reno was in the opposite bed, his own wound a being seen to.

'I should be dead. Why aren't I dead,' he thought to himself.

Cloud sighed, wincing at the pain of having every muscle and bone in his body ache, but settled into whatever comfort the hospital bed could offer him. He knew that, soon, he would have a lot of explaining to his friends and he wasn't quite sure he was ready for all of it.

For Jenova. For another adventure. For protecting the planet once more. He wasn't sure if he was ready for any of it.

But then, he felt her presence again stir within him, a feeling of content and reassurance washing over him, as if letting him know everything would be okay and that he would just need some rest for right now.

Cloud smiled and breathed out her name, "Aerith..."

He didn't know how, but he knew that she saved him one again that morning and the very least he could do for her was protect the planet she cherished once more. Even if it meant facing Jenova. He would do anything for her after all she'd done for everyone.

Slowly closing his eyes, the smile remained on his face as he slowly drifted back into the peaceful world of sleep.

"You really are a guardian angel."


	3. Ahead On Our Way

**Chapter Three - Ahead On Our Way**

It was the morning of the next day when Cloud finally awoke in his bed at the medical center in Edge.

Before his mind could process everything that had happened the night before, he noticed Reno was still asleep in the bed across from him. If he hadn't known better, he would have thought Reno was dead, but being the pest that he could be at times, Reno just wasn't that easy to get rid of.

Cloud still couldn't understand how he survived, either. He knew that he and Reno had tracked down Jenova in Wallmarket late at night and a short battle ensued. Though, the last thing Cloud remembered was his confrontation with Jenova, him falling and then everything turned white.

In that brightness, he found himself in a flower field with Aerith waiting there for him. For a brief moment, he really thought that was the end of his life and he had died, but just as he reached his hand out to hers, he woke up in that hospital room. As he found Aerith's flower held delicately in his hand, he knew it must have been some blessed interception on Aerith's part that still allowed him to be alive and breathing now.

With a heavy sigh, he pushed his head back into his pillows and closed his eyes. His thoughts swam with what had happened the night before and Jenova. He couldn't piece everything together for himself, but Jenova was back and she was planning something horrible for the planet. That was reason enough for Cloud to be concerned.

Without hesitation, Cloud knew that he had a duty to protect the planet, especially from the likes of Jenova, who had caused so much pain and suffering for so many. It was without question that he would do what he could to track the creature down and put a stop to her, like he and his friends had done so before.

But that's where Cloud stopped to think. Things were different now, for everybody. They were spread out across the planet now and weren't the traveling group of companions they once were. Everyone had their own lives to live. Barret was making up the time he'd lost with Marlene, Tifa was busy keeping the bar running, the others popped in every now and then, but for the most part, everyone seemed thankful to live their lives without having to protect the world another day.

Could he really ask or expect them to go on another adventure to protect and save the planet? If they'd done it all before, would they really want to do it all over again? And even if they didn't, could he track down and face Jenova all on his own?

He didn't really have the answer, but he knew that he was going to keep fighting on - to protect the world that Aerith had given her life to save.

* * *

Back at the Seventh Heaven bar, Tifa paced around behind the bar nervously, while Barret sat at a table and waited for a call from the hospital. The two had decided to keep the bar closed for the day and were waiting for updates on Cloud. For the sake of not causing Marlene and Denzel to worry, the two of them had decided against telling them for the time being. They figured it would be better to not cause any more mounting concern.

"I just don't understand how any of this coulda happened," Barret said. "Spike might be a dumbass and jump into danger, but he doesn't go gettin' himself hurt like that."

Barret was actually the one that had found Cloud and Reno in the early morning. When the burly man realized that Cloud wasn't in his room and that he hadn't gone out to do anything work-related, Barret grew concerned. He knew that if there was any place Cloud would go to at any time, it would most likely be Aerith's church, so in the early hours of the morning, he set off. On his way to the church, however, he saw an unusual pile of smoldering debris and Cloud's motorcycle just a short distance away from it. Upon further inspection, he had discovered Cloud and Reno's battered and bruised bodies. When he realized that they were still alive, although relieved, he immediately called for them to be brought into the hospital.

He looked around, thinking of what could have happened. From above, he could make out the top of the plate, as long as the winding highways and train tracks that circled throughout Midgar. He surmised that there must have been some accident that caused them to fall from a great height, but he'd have to wait for those answers later. However, most odd of all he found, was that Cloud and Reno's bodies seemed to be lying in a sole flower patch that somehow seemed to grow in the lifeless slums of Midgar. It was a miracle to say the least.

"His spiky little dumbass might be hurt, but at least he's still alive," Barret concluded with a huff.

Tifa shook her head and wiped the bar countertop down, "What was he doing all the way out there in Midgar so late at night, though? And with Reno of all people?"

"You know Cloud. He makes his way off all the damn time and he gives his reasons to no one," he said.

"I know, I know," she sighed.

Barret crossed his arms, "I guess we're just gonna have to wait and see what Spike has to say when he gets his head in check."

There was a sudden ring of the phone, which Tifa quickly raced up to get, expecting it to be the hospital.

"Hello?" Tifa paused, "Oh, Cid, it's you. No, no, I haven't forgotten. The place is all ready for you guys."

Barret listened as Tifa finished her phone conversation with the pilot. When she was finished, he looked up at her, "Cid on his way here?"

She nodded, "Yeah, he's leaving Rocket Town now and he's bringing Shera and Yuffie along with him for a little visit. They should be here by nighttime."

"Ah, so that was what that was all about. I forgot that they were coming," Barret said.

Tifa shrugged, "Yeah, they don't know about what happened to Cloud yet, either. I guess we're all gonna have to wait it out until they get here before we can learn what happened."

* * *

It was the early afternoon when a helicopter passed over the busy streets of Edge, heading towards the ruins of Midgar and the old Shinra Headquarters.

At the passenger seat of the copter, ex-President Rufus Shinra sat, looking down out the window and to the city below. From all the way up there, the people of Edge looked like nothing more than ants and Rufus himself didn't think much more of them, even when he didn't have too much going for him in the present.

While the company built in his family's namesake was once a thriving company that essentially kept the world spinning, like most other things, that too had changed. The name Shinra was nearly wiped from the planet. The company had fallen, people started going out of their way to avoid any sort of connection with them and the inheritance Rufus had kept through his family's company slowly started to wane, leaving him just to be a shell of the powerful man he once was before.

The worst part was that Rufus was very self-aware that all this was happening to him, though he'd never admit it and would still muster up the appearance that he had more power than he actually did.

"We're descending down, sir," the Shinra operative in the pilot's seat announced to the ex-President, as he began to direct the copter down towards the base of the Shinra Headquarters.

Rufus nodded and awaited for landing. As the copter reached its' destination, he saw Rude, Tseng and Elena arrive at their planned meeting spot at the front of the ruined Headquarters and waited further instruction from him.

Rufus emerged from the copter and was met by Tseng, who helped the ex-President down. "Sir, it's good you're here."

"Hm, yes, but it seems you're one man short," Rufus mused.

"Oh, Reno...right," Elena began, before looking to the others. "We...ran into some trouble mast night."

"Ah, so it seems that I was right to send you all in to investigate," Rufus smirked. "What happened?"

Tseng began, "Well, late last night when we went inside, we ended up...tracking down Jenova."

"Jenova?" Rufus raised an eyebrow, intrigued. 'Didn't Cloud and the others destroy that creature?"

"We thought so, but it appears a part of her remained in the remains of the crater in the north and she regenerated herself fully," Tseng continued. "We tried to fight her off last night, but we were no match for her."

"Clearly," said Rufus. "All of you can't take on Cloud and his friends and you really thought you'd be able to win against a creature like Jenova?"

Elena bowed her head, "Our apologies, sir."

"What happened next?" Rufus looked around, "Where's Reno? He didn't go off and die did here?"

Elena continued, "No, after Jenova escaped, he and Cloud ended up chasing her down. We got a message From Reno saying that he had tracked her down in Wallmarket, but...that's the last we've heard of him."

"Hm, interesting," Rufus said. "Well, if Jenova is back, she certainly has a reason behind it all and it can't be good. It'll only be a matter of time before Cloud starts chasing her down, whether he wants to or not."

Elena looked to Tseng and Rude and then back at the ex-President who smirked, remaining deep in thought as if a plan was forming somewhere deep in his mind.

Rufus used all of this new information to his advantage as a plan clicked in place with a smirk on his face. "This could prove very useful to me and Shinra as a whole. With a threat like Jenova roaming the open world, that could cause quite a stir, especially if she's seeking to harm Cloud and his friends. Who knows what damage she can do?"

The Turks looked at each other, knowing that whenever Rufus had a plan in mind, it wasn't ever good for anyone outside of Shinra's inner circle.

Rufus continued, "If destruction and danger in the world was imminent, the people would be forced to put their trust in someone or something to protect them - and that's when the Shinra Company will come into play. We might not have the peoples' trust now, but if the planet was to be faced with another crisis, they'll be forced to put their belief in something powerful enough, with as many resources available to them, that would be able to protect them. After all, they'll want to put their trust where the power lies. It's not like the entire planet could be saved by one person, right? They'll want to trust a powerful entity."

Tseng squinted and scratched the back of his head, "So, Jenova's appearance is actually a good thing? Because...because it..."

"Because it forces the people having to rely on Shinra again," Rufus concluded with a smile. "We utilize Jenova to our advantage, let her cause a little trouble and leave it up to Cloud and the other to dispose of her. By the time they do, we'll have won over the people and I'll be working the way to making the Shinra Company the powerful organization it was not too long ago."

The other Turks remained silent, not entirely sure of what to make of what Rufus had planned. If Reno had been there, he probably would have thought that this entire charade was ridiculous, but they were left to hear Rufus out. The truth was, Rufus' plan was just as dishonest and corrupt as the Shinra Company had always been. Using fear and manipulation as a means of getting people to believe in something, letting other people do the job of protecting the planet while taking the credit for it, they were classic schemes taken right out of the old Shinra Company book.

Rufus knew it was deceptive and dishonest and relied entirely on the people of the world putting their false belief in him and his company, but he didn't care. If it meant rising back to claim the power he once had, that's all that mattered.

Rufus went back to the copter and opened the door, turning back to the Turks. He gestured to the three of them, "Get in."

Elena, Tseng and Rude slowly made their way over to the copter, hesitantly. The three made their way into the back of the copter.

"Where are we going," Elena asked.

Rufus smirked, getting in the copter and closing the door behind him. "We have work to do."

The copter rose and took off into the sky, leaving the shattered Shinra Headquarters behind.

* * *

Cloud had slept for most of the day, allowing time for his bruises to mend and his wounds to heal. He turned in his bed, a dream beginning to form in his unconscious world of sleep...

 _The rolling hills and grass plains stretched far beyond the dark sky that shrouded the plate that covered Midgar. It was late into the evening the day after Cloud and the others had escaped from the city after rescuing Aerith from the Shinra Headquarters. They had spent most of the day traveling from Midgar and headed towards Kalm Town, a fair distance away from the sectors which they had just escaped._

 _Many miles away from Midgar, along the endless grass fields, the embers of a waning fire illuminated in the night just next to a camp tent that had been pitched just a few hours before._

 _Inside the tent, Cloud's sleeping figure was sprawled out along the ground, his head cradled against the curves of his arms. The sudden sound of a branch breaking and grass rustling outside caused the blonde to stir, his eyes immediately snapping open. Instinctively, he reached for the handle of his sword that was just within reach and sat up to defend himself from the approaching intruder._

 _When he sat up and looked around, their newest traveling companion, Red XIII, was curled up and resting on the opposite side of the tent,, but when he saw the bundled pile of empty blankets just next to him, Cloud's heart sunk in fear._

 _"Aerith!" Cloud whispered out to himself in a panic, pleading that the innocent flower girl was unharmed. She was still awake right next to him when he had fallen asleep, but now, her absence from the tent at this late hour worried Cloud to no end._

 _Without a thought, Cloud sprung to his feet and went towards the entrance of the tent, sword tight in hand. He quickly unzipped the opening and bolted outside, only...to find Aerith perched next to the dying fire, snapping a branch in half and placing it along the flames, keeping the smoldering embers burning._

 _Aerith looked up from the fire at her bodyguard and smiled, "Hey you."_

 _The blonde brought a hand to his forehead, feeling a great sense of relief wash over him when he realized she was okay. His eyes stayed wide as he caught his breath, "Aerith, you nearly gave me a heart attack! I thought something had happened to you."_

 _"I'm sorry. I didn't want to wake you up," she said with an apologetic smile. "You don't need to worry, Cloud. I'm a big girl, I can take care of myself."_

 _"I know that you can, Aerith," Cloud stepped out of the tent and went towards her. "But...I'm your bodyguard. I want to keep you safe at all times."_

 _Aerith smiled to herself, happy that the flickering flames cast a glow across her face that hid her blushing cheeks._

 _Cloud took a seat down next to the flower girl, savouring the warmth from both her presence and from the small campfire in front of him, keeping him warm during the brisk night. A moment of comfortable silence passed between the two, only filled by the sounds of the crackling firewood and the buzzing of the night fireflies._

 _He turned to her then, speaking softly in question, "So, what are you doing out here so late? We're gonna be having an early morning if we're meeting up with Barret and Tifa at Kalm."_

 _"I know. I just..." Aerith started, before looking down at her hands. She looked up at the blonde then and he saw a world of hope and wonder in her eyes. "...I wanted to see the stars."_

 _"The stars?" He turned from her to face up towards the night sky. Above him, hundreds of stars blanketed their way across the darkness above. The bright stars dazzled brilliantly in contrast with the stark darkness that carried through the sky above._

 _He felt his lips twitch upwards at the flower girl's innocence. He knew that Aerith would appreciate the natural beauty of the planet, so it came as no surprise that she would stay up late to do so._

 _She let herself rest back, gently falling into the grass behind her. Her brunette hair pooled around her, as she looked up into the night with a warm smile. "I've...never seen anything quite like this before."_

 _"Yeah, it's pretty nice out here, huh? " Cloud said, before turning back in the direction of Midgar. "We can probably see so many more stars because we're farther away from the city. Out here in the middle of the nowhere, there aren't a lot of towns and villages, so there isn't as much light like there is from the sectors."_

 _Aerith tilted her head and smiled, listening to Cloud talk._

 _"What is it," he asked, staring down at her._

 _She shook her head lightly and laughed, "Nothing. I just...wouldn't know what stars would look like anywhere else. This is my first time seeing them."_

 _Cloud tilted his head and stared at her, "Wait, seriously?"_

 _"Mhm," she answered honestly. "I've never really even had a moment to look at the night sky before."_

 _Cloud stared, his mouth slightly opened, as he turned from her to look back up at the stars. It was amazing how something so common and ordinary like looking at the stars meant nothing to anyone else, but to Aerith, it was breath-taking. It was new and exciting and kept her in a place of wonder, curious about all that the outside world held in store._

 _Cloud slowly glancedo over to her, taking in the wonder and excitement the flower girl exuded, and he couldn't help but feel the smile grow on his lips. Seeing someone so genuinely good and kind being able to appreciate everything that made their planet so beautiful and wonderful, even when it was something so taken for granted for, it made him want to travel the planet with her just to see as much of it through her eyes as he could._

 _He shook his head, trying not to get too deep into those thoughts. After all, they'd only really known each other for about a week now. Between escaping Turks, having bizarre adventures in Wallmarket and breaking into and escaping the Shinra Headquarters, Cloud and Aerith had quickly began to develop a closeness to each other and it felt nice. Even with all the quests and missions, the two of them sitting out here alone by the fire simply talking to one another, there was a simplicity that came with it - just being around someone you enjoyed being with._

 _It felt new and exciting and wonderful and maybe even a little bit scary for the both of them, but these small moments together, neither one would trade for anything else._

 _"I've only really seen the sky once before when I was a little girl," Aerith continued, sitting up and inching closer to the fire. "It...was right before my mother died."_

 _Cloud frowned and looked at her, sympathetically._

 _"It was fifteen years ago already. She managed to save me and broke the two of us out of the Headquarters, but she was too weak to continue on," she said, looking into the embers of the burning fire. "I remember the two of us running across the top of the plate together and that was really the first and only time I'd ever seen the sky. It was dark and there was lightning. It seemed massive and endless, like it could just pull you up into it and you could be lost forever. We tried getting as far away as we could _and then, my...mother died."__

 _ _Cloud didn't really know what to do or how to react, especially in terms of handling others' feelings, but it felt right to be closer to her to comfort her. He shifted closer to her and let his arm rest, placing his hand lightly over hers.__

 _ _Aerith felt her eyes begin to tear up, "I was kept in that building for the first seven years of my life and it all ended with my mother risking it all to save me, and she did. I'd spent every day with her, so when she was finally gone, it was like everything I'd known had disappeared. That's when Elmyra found me."__

 _ _"I'm...so sorry, Aerith," Cloud said quietly, his shoulder just brushing up against hers, keeping his hand against hers to comfort her.__

 _ _"It's okay," she turned to him and gave him a weak smile. She laughed lightly, "This is actually kind of silly, but for a long time when I was younger, I was actually afraid of the sky. I saw it once and it seemed so dark and scary and then my mother died. I thought that it could just sweep you up into it and that that you could be lost forever." She shook her head and looked in Cloud's eyes, "I know...it's...it sounds dumb."__

 _ _"I don't think that sounds dumb at all," Cloud said back.__

 _ _Aerith's small smile grew warmer then.__

 _ _ _ _Cloud looked away and blushed, "For what it's worth, I think you're brave for everything you've been through. The way you grew up, running from the Turks, the way you traded your own safety for Marlene's. It's really something special."____

 _ _ _ _She smiled to herself some more and playfully pushed her shoulder into his. "Well, I'm not always brave, you know."____

 _ _ _ _"Well, neither am I," he said with a light smirk, pushing his shoulder playfully back into her's. "That's okay. We don't have to be."____

 _ _ _ _Aerith nodded and laughed quietly, "Well, I know it's only the start of this new adventure, but it makes me feel a lot better knowing that I have my brave bodyguard with me."____

 _ _ _ _Cloud blushed and smiled, "And...it makes me feel a lot braver knowing you're around, too." He got up from his seat and stretched, "I know it might be the first time you're traveling the world and seeing all these different places and things and it's exciting, but I know it can also be scary."____

 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _"I won't be scared," she looked up at him and smiled. "I'm excited to see the world I never got the chance to see before. And I'm happy I'll get to see it all with you there."________

 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _"I'll be there when we explore everything," he smiled and looked down at her. "Even the sky. And you'll realize that there's no reason to be afraid of it."________

 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _"Not when you're there with me," Aerith's cheeks blushed and she felt an indescribable warmth fill her soul. She watched as Cloud made his way to the tent.________________

 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _He stretched and scratched the back of his head, "It's getting pretty late and we've gotta be up early to get to Kalm. You should get some sleep."________________

 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _She turned to him and nodded, "I'm on my way, bodyguard."________________

 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _"Goodnight, Aerith."________________

 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _"Goodnight, Cloud," she said as she watched him enter the tent. She took a moment, a large sigh escaping from her and she couldn't stop herself from smiling. She felt this incredible feeling overwhelm her. It was slightly familiar, but far stronger than anything she'd ever felt before. It felt amazing and wonderful, like she could do anything with this incredible feeling.________________

 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _And it was all for Cloud.________________

 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _She rose from her seat and went over to the tent. Miles and miles above her, twinkling in the dark night sky, two stars shimmered brilliantly, matching one another perfectly.________________

 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _"Cloud..."________________

 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _"_______________ Cloud..."

"Cloud, wake up!"

Cloud was abruptly shaken awake by the young ninja who had gripped him by the shoulders. "Okay, okay. I'm up."

"Yuffie, go easy," Barret instructed from behind the ninja.

"Hey, I got him to wake up, didn't I," she defended.

Behind Barret were Tifa, Cid, Shera, Marlene and Denzel, who'd all come to see Cloud.

Cid stepped forward, slapping Cloud on the shoulder. "How the $# % are ya, Cloud? What the hell did ya do to go off and get #$%&^' hurt like this?"

"What Cid means to say is that it's good to see you, Cloud," Shera said, removing her coat and holding it, revealing her very noticeably pregnant stomach.

"Wow! Look at you," Tifa said, marveling at Shera. She carefully placed one of her hands on the woman's stomach.

"It's been awhile since I traveled, it's getting a little bit more difficult," Shera said, sitting herself down in a nearby chair.

"The baby must be coming soon then, right," asked Tifa.

Cid laughed, "Yep, she's a full nine months pregnant now. Little tike should be on his way any day."

"And you're so certain that it's a boy?"

"Yep, the way it's always kickin' at Shera's stomach, it's gotta be," said Cid.

"Real charming," Yuffie mocked and rolled her eyes. "If there's gonna be a mini-Cid running around, let's hope he's at least a little bit more bearable than you."

Cid sneered, "Can it! You just be #%$^&' grateful I haven't kicked you out of my goddamn house yet, you ungrateful # $%!"

Yuffie shook her head and laughed with mockery at him, "Ha. Ha. Yeah right, whatever."

"Well, looks like you can take those two out of Rocket Town, but you can't take the fighting out of them," Barret laughed. "Shera, I don't know how you deal with it."

Shera laughed and sighed, "Sometimes, I don't know how I do it, either."

The truth was that Shera couldn't turn Yuffie away or let Cid have his way and kick the young ninja out of the house. Even if Cid and Yuffie were always at odds and never got along with each other, Shera had a soft spot for the young ninja who just seemed like she wanted a place to call her home and someone to look after her. Even though it had only been a few months since Yuffie had moved in, with a new baby on the way and the constant fighting between the pilot and the ninja, their little house on the edge of Rocket Town was soon going to feel a lot smaller.

"But to be fair, I don't know how Shera's managed to put up with Cid after all these years," Yuffie laughed. "Old man's probably about to croak any day now, anyway."

"Yeah, you would like that, wouldn't ya?" Cid sneered.

Denzel moved up to Cloud's bed, "You're not too hurt, are you?"

Cloud shook his head and placed a hand down on Denzel's ruffled hair, "I got a little bit beat up, but I'm gonna be okay."

"Which brings me to ask, what the hell happened to you, Cloud?" Barret interrupted abruptly. "You disappear in the middle of the damn night and end up here with Reno of all people?"

"Thank God, finally somebody noticed me," Reno whined from his bed. "Yes, hello everyone. I'm here. My name is Reno and I'm doing just fine, too."

Barret turned back and laughed, "You calm your ass down. If it wasn't for me, you'd still be out lookin' like a mess in the slums, not that you deserve me helpin' you in the first place.

"Yeah, yeah, you're not wrong," Reno said, waving Barret off.

"We're glad you're okay, Reno," said Tifa, a bit reluctantly. "But really, what happened?"

Cloud sighed and scratched the back of his head, before he looked down at Denzel and Marlene. "I...don't think..."

Shera caught onto what Cloud was getting at when he looked at the two kids. As a soon to be mother, she understood that there were certain things that kids didn't need to be exposed to just yet. The dangers of the world and those that threatened to hurt them and their friends was one of those things.

Shera rose from her seat and went to the kids, "Marlene, Denzel, why don't you come with me?"

"But-" Denzel protested.

The woman took the two children by the shoulder and directed them towards the door that led to the outside hall. "It'll just be for a moment."

"Ugh, we always miss out on the good stuff," Marlene whined, before reluctantly being led out with Denzel.

Shera gave Cloud and the others a nod before disappearing through the door with the kids.

Once they were gone, the others turned back to Cloud and Reno. Tifa spoke up first, "Well, what is it?"

Cloud looked at his friends and sighed, "We encountered Jenova."

"Jenova...?"

"Didn't we finish off that creep right before takin' care of Sephiroth," Barret asked.

Cloud shook his head, "We fought her many times, but I guess we didn't destroy her completely since...well, she's back."

Reno rose up from his bed, "The old ex-President instructed me and some of the other Turks to look into a break-in at the Shinra Headquarters. When we started looking around, we came across Jenova in Hojo's labs. She escaped and Cloud and I tracked her down, but as you can see, she did a pretty bad number on us."

The next few minutes passed with both Cloud and Reno filling in Barret, Tifa, Yuffie and Cid on the events that had happened with Jenova the night before that ended up landing the both of them in the hospital.

"I don't know whatever Jenova has planned this time, but whatever it is, it won't be good," Cloud said. "She has a serious vendetta against all of us. Everyone on the planet, really."

"She was about ready to kill us both last night, but we got lucky somehow," said Reno.

Cloud nodded, "With a dangerous foe like her out in the world and planning on doing it harm, I can't sit back and let it happen. I'm not going to. I'll travel all over the world if it means tracking her down and putting an end to her...if it means protecting the planet."

"Damn, Cloud. Look at you," Barret smirked. "What happened to that cold, heartless dumbass who didn't give a crap about the planet and what the hell happened to it?"

"He's changed," Cloud nodded and exchanged a smirk back at his friend. "It's because of her. I'm doing this all for her, for Aerith. I'm not going to watch the world she gave her life to save get destroyed, even if it means risking my own life. I won't let everything she's done for all of us be in vain. I'm fighting for the both of us, for the planet she loved."

The friends remained silent then and looked at each other, before turning back to Cloud.

Finally, Barret shrugged, "Okay, so when are we leaving?"

Cloud looked at him, "What?"

Barret continued, "As much as you can be a spiky, little dumbass, you're our friend. You really think we're gonna let you do this on your own?"

"Exactly," Tifa added. "Besides, we have our own duties to protect the planet, too. That's what starting AVALANCHE was all about, after all, wasn't it? To protect the planet and make it better for everyone. If it involves saving the planet, we're in."

"Wait, really?" Cloud looked at all of them.

Yuffie shrugged and replied with a sing-song tone, "Yeah, sure. I have some frustration I have to get out on Jenova and some new monsters. Besides, it could be a lot of fun stealing...I-I mean, f-finding all new sorts of materia!"

"And with my airship, we'll be able to find the #$% # in no time," Cid said. "We could leave tomorrow, track that bitch down and be back before evening, no sweat."

The ninja crossed her arms, "Well, I don't know if it'll be as easy as Gramps says, but we're definitely willing to help."

Cloud looked at his friends, "I...I honestly don't know what to say. I didn't think you'd all be onboard. Barret, you have Marlene and you're still making up for time lost you had the first time you went to save the planet. Tifa, you have the bar to look after. Cid, you're wife is about to give birth and you're about to have a family and Yuffie, you're...well, I honestly don't know what the hell you're doing, but you have something you'd probably rather be doing, too, than risking your life again."

"Meh, point taken," Yuffie smirked. "But I'd be lying if I said that these adventures and almost getting killed every day wasn't a little bit of fun. Besides, as the others said and even though I hate to admit it, we're all sort of...friends now, I guess."

"Which means we're not gonna let you go off and do this damn thing on your own," Barret said. "We might all have our own lives, but sometimes there are just some things that are more important than us all, Spike."

Cloud nodded and looked at them, "Thank you, all of you."

"And with all of us fighting together, Jenova isn't going to know what hit her," Tifa said with a smile.

Cid looked at the group, "So, I got the newly repaired and enhanced Highwind waitin' outside the city. When do we start this little shin-dig?"

"We leave tomorrow," Cloud said with determination.

* * *

After the group of friends had decided to leave on their quest to track down Jenova the following day, Tifa and Barret returned back to the Seventh Heaven with the kids. Cid, Shera and Yuffie would be arriving back at the bar shortly, but Cloud and Reno had remained at the hospital for the night while they continued to recover.

At the door of the bar, Tifa flipped the sign on the window to say 'Closed'. She turned back to Barret and sighed, "Who knows when this place will be open again. We don't know how long we'll be gone for this adventure."

"Or when we'll come back for that matter. If we'll come back," Barret muttered.

She went to Barret and gave him a small squeeze on the shoulder, "Hey, don't talk like that. We'll be okay."

"Maybe. Last time, we barely escaped Meteorfall. Keep in mind the ones we lost along the way. Aerith, Biggs, Wedge, Jesse, even Dyne," Barret sighed and shook his head. "I just don't want all that to happen again. I know it's some damn dangerous business we get ourselves involved in, but I just don't wanna see anyone else get hurt. It's difficult enough bein' without Marlene."

"You haven't told her yet that you're leaving, have you," Tifa asked.

"Nope, not yet," he shook his head. "I didn't know how to bring myself to tell her that her daddy'll be leavin' her again. I don't know how she'll take it."

She sighed, "Well, you're going to have to tell her, Barret. We're leaving in the morning. Don't push it off til then cuz I think that'll only upset her more if she doesn't know sooner."

Barret nodded, feeling his tears well up in his eyes when he thought about leaving his little girl. "I already spoke to Elmyra and she's more than happy to take in Marlene and Denzel when we're away. I called her when we got back and she said she already had a room ready for them."

"That'll be good, she's looked after Marlene before. She'll be in great care with Elmyra," Tifa reassured.

"I know. Elmyra said she could use the company, too. I know I got it tough when I'm away from Marlene, but then I think how she's been alone ever since Aerith left us," Barret sighed. "I guess...I should appreciate whatever time I got with Marlene, huh?"

Tifa nodded and gave Barret a squeeze on the shoulder, "Yeah, you should go to her. Just enjoy what time you have left with her because tomorrow will come soon enough."

"Yeah, thanks, Tifa," Barret said, before he got up from the barstool and made his way upstairs for what Tifa was sure would be a tearful conversation between him and Marlene.

With a heavy sigh, Tifa cleaned up around the bar down stairs, putting away glasses and bottles behind the bar and straightening up the tables and chairs. It felt a bit weird to close and clean up the bar knowing that tomorrow wouldn't be just another day of business and that she didn't know when she'd be seeing customers in her place again.

She hoped that she was right and that she and her friends would be able to eliminate Jenova without losing anybody or anyone getting hurt, but it seemed like such an impossible feat with the planet's life in danger. She would have to hope for the best, and if not for her sake, then for Barret's.

She went to the wall and flipped the switch, the lights in the bar turning off and leaving the place in darkness.

* * *

Morning had soon come and before they knew it, Barret and Tifa were gathering what provisions they would need for the start of their journey. Barret had grabbed his satchel and filled it with a tent, potions and equipment they would use, while Marlene stood behind him, a sad expression on her face.

"Are you sure you have to go so soon, papa?" Marlene said in a quiet voice.

Barret turned back to her and looked at his daughter, sympathetically. "I'm sorry, baby. I promise I'll be back soon, Marlene. I promise."

"Okay, papa," Marlene said, going to hug her dad. She smiled as Barret wrapped his arms around her in a tight hug and squeezed her tight. "Ow, papa! You're squeezin' me too tight!"

"I know," Barret smiled. "I just don't wanna let you go."

"Me, either," she looked up at her dad and smiled. "You go take care of things, okay? Denzel and I will be alright with aunt Elmyra."

There was a knock from outside the room then and Tifa appeared with Denzel, "Hey, come on. Cid picked Cloud up from the hospital and their waiting downstairs. We're ready to get going."

They had gathered their belongings and Cloud, Barret, Tifa and the kids had piled into Barret's buggy and made their way off towards Elmyra's house.

Although Elmyra had once lived in the slums of Midgar with Aerith and watched over Marlene there for some time, when Meteor came, in order to escape the chaos and destruction that ensued, she took Marlene and the two went to the town of Kalm, where she had a sister and extended family that lived there. Since then, her sister had moved to Edge when it became a more prominent city and Elmyra soon followed, finding her own home. Even with family nearby, nothing still felt quite right for the woman and she still felt lonely ever since Aerith's death.

Barret parked their buggy outside of Elmyra's home. It was a small house just on the outskirts of the city. The garden and yard of the home was filled with flowers, almost as if Aerith had planted them herself, but they knew it must have been Elmyra's doing, serving as a reminder of her daughter. The kids in the city loved to see the different types of flowers that Elmyra had planted in her lawn.

"Are we sure Elmyra can handle them," Tifa asked with a smile.

"Hey, don't talk like we're such a handful," Denzel defended.

"I'm sure Elmyra will be alright," Barret said with a smile. "She's looking forward to the company."

The group had left the car and went to retrieve Denzel and Marlene's belongings. Cloud stepped up to the entrance of Elmyra's house and knocked on the door.

A moment later, the door opened and Elmyra appeared. Elmyra had a warm smile on her face, a sort of kindness that she carried with her that was very similar to Aerith's. She carried a niceness about her that made it very easy to get along with her. Ever since Aerith had left them, Cloud and Elmyra had seen each other a bit, the loss of Aerith and how they both missed her something they had bonded over. Having each other and the stories they could tell about the flower girl was just another comfort that temporarily filled the pain of losing Aerith.

"Oh, Cloud. It's good to see you again," Elmyra said, putting her arms around the blonde and pulling him into a tight hug.

Cloud remained still for a second, before placing a hand on Elmyra's back. "You, too."

"Don't forget about us," Barret said, leading Tifa and the kids up to the doorway of the house, their bags in his hand.

"Barret, Tifa. It's good to see you both, too," the older woman said, greeting the two. "Thank you for all you're doing. Barret's only told me a little, but I'm sure if it means protecting the planet, it'd make Aerith happy."

"Of course," Tifa smiled. "Are you sure you'll be okay on your own with the kids? We'd hate to inconvenience you."

"Oh, not at all," Elmyra smiled and leaned down to greet the kids. "Marlene, look how much you've grown!"

"Elmyra!" Marlene said, throwing her arms around the woman. Elymra was practically like another mother to Marlene. She'd spent quite a bit of time taking care of the girl that the two really did love each other as a mother and daughter would. Marlene closely resembled Aerith when she was a young girl, too. Her brunette hair and the pink ribbon she'd wear in her hair made the resemblance all the more uncanny. Seeing Marlene brought Elmyra back to the time when she'd first adopted Aerith.

Elmyra leaned over and looked at the boy with a smile, "It's good to see you, too, Denzel."

Cloud tilted his head and smirked as she watched Elmyra ruffle Denzel's hair.

Denzel smirked and whispered to Elmyra, "I thought you might have forgotten about me."

Elmyra shook her head and quietly laughed, "Never."

Cloud examined the quiet interaction and furrowed his eyebrows. 'Huh?' he thought to himself. Had they known each other before somehow? He couldn't tell, but before he could think about it anymore, Barret and Tifa shuffled their way inside with the kids' bags.

"Come on, we should get you guys settled upstairs," Tifa said, directing the kids upstairs with their things.

Cloud watched as Tifa, Barret, Elmyra and the kids made their way up the stairs. He stared around the living room. It was quite a comfortable, cozy place that she had for herself. Off of the kitchen was the living room, where there was a large couch, a cat perched up on top of it. The tables and counters were filled with flowers that she'd brought in from her garden that filled the house with a sweet, floral scent.

He aimlessly wandered through the room and noticed a wall of pictures down the hall. He looked closely at the pictures, some of them were pictures of Elmyra's sister's family, other ones featured a younger Elmyra with her husband, who Cloud had learned had passed away quite some time ago.

His eyes soon softened as they came across pictures of Aerith that Elmyra had hung on the wall. There was a photo of the two of them in the garden in front of their old house. Aerith looked so little and feisty then, her big green eyes just as impressive as they were when she was a young woman. Cloud glanced over the picture with a smile. He'd found another picture of Aerith at a time when she looked to be a teenager. maybe fourteen of fifteen.

Then, he came across the most recent picture of Aerith, which looked like it must have been taken shortly before he met her. Aerith was sitting in the garden in a green dress, holding a beautiful, sunflower behind her and smiling beautifully for the photo, her loose hair falling back behind her. Cloud's eyes softened at the photo and his cheeks turned red. Aerith really was beautiful, he thought to himself.

A cough came from the hallway that alerted Cloud. He realized Elmyra was standing there and he fidgeted for a quick moment, nervously scratching the back of his head. "Elmyra! Um, sorry...I was just...just..."

"It's okay, Cloud. I know," Elmyra said, walking towards him and stopping in front of the pictures of her daughter. "I know what you're thinking."

Cloud nodded and turned back to the photos of Aerith. "I...miss her. I miss her more than anything."

"I know, me too. I miss her every day," Elmyra said, placing a hand on his shoulder. "I think every day without her will somehow get easier, but it never does. It's like that feeling of still being a parent waiting for your child to come back home to you, but you just keep waiting, wondering where they are. All I have now is our memories and these photos to remember her by."

He nodded and turned to Elmyra, "You know, now that I think about it, I don't think I'd ever seen a photo of Aerith before. I have a photo of everybody, all my friends, but none of her, when really...I need one of her the most."

"Well, in that case..." Elmyra went to the wall and took off the photo of Aerith, delicately tracing her fingers along the frame, a smile on her face when her eyes welled up with tears. She turned to Cloud and brought the frame up to him, "I want you to have this."

Cloud looked down at the photo of Aerith, as Elmyra extended it out to him. "Elmyra, I...I couldn't."

"You can, Cloud," Elmyra smiled and nudged the photo towards him. "I know how much Aerith meant to you...and from the moment she brought you to our home that night, I knew you'd meant something special to her, too."

Cloud grasped the frame of the picture, staring down at the photo.

"If I can continue to share my memories of her with you, if that'd make you happy, I know Aerith would be happy, too," Elmyra said with a genuine smile. "Please, take it. I have many memories and photos. The least I could do is share them with you. That's what Aerith would want."

Cloud looked down at the photo of Aerith, holding it so carefully in his hand, as if the slightest touch might ruin it. He'd always wanted something like this to remember her by, something he could keep with him to look at when he'd felt lost and broken without her. He'd had photos of everyone but her, but now thanks to Elmyra, he'd gotten something of Aerith's that he'd keep with him always.

It was a small act of kindess, but Cloud thought it was the nicest thing anybody had ever done for him.

He held the frame up to his chest and looked at Elmyra, appreciatively. "Thank you. I can't tell you what this means to me." His voice cracked.

Elmyra nodded and smiled, "I know. Just keep it close to your heart."

"I will."

* * *

The group had finished settling Marlene and Denzel down into Elmyra's house and were saying their goodbyes before setting off on the true start of this next adventure.

"Don't worry, I've got everything under control," Elmyra said, calling back from the house. "I'll take good care of them!"

"Bye, papa!" Marlene called out from the house, running up to give her dad one more hug. "Come back soon, okay?"

"I promised you I would," said Barret, before giving his daughter a goodbye kiss on the forehead. He watched as his daughter ran back into the house, as Elmyra waved them off.

Tifa nudged him, "You seem to be doing okay."

"I'm about a damn second from crying like a damn baby, so let's get on a move on, okay," Barret said in one big huff, trying not to let her see the tears in his eyes.

"Aw, you big teddy bear. You'll see her again soon," she said.

Tifa and Barret turned back to Cloud, who'd met up with Cid, Shera and Yuffie who had arrived in a buggy that Cid had kept stored in the cargo hold of the Highwind.

Cloud turned to the group, "Okay. That's it, then. I guess it's time to start looking for Jenova and finding out what she's up to so we can put a stop to her."

Barret shook his head, "Yeah, but how are we gonna track down a damn thing like that? We didn't know where the hell she went and we don't know where the hell she's going."

Cloud thought for a moment, before speaking, "Well, what did we do last time when we were looking for Sephiroth?"

"We went from town to town looking for clues that pointed us in his direction until it eventually led us to cross paths," Tifa said. "Though, it wasn't as...easy-sounding as that."

"Well, that's as good a place to start if there is one," Cloud said. "We can go from place to place collecting what information we can until it'll lead us right to Jenova. We'll finish her off then."

"Now hold yer britches just a second," Cid said. "I got this big ol' airship just waitin' to be used parked right outside the city. It'll get you where you need to go real quick with no fuss in-between."

"Hm, Cid's right, we can get to and from places faster, but we'll be missing out on possible clues in-between if we travel by land. Jenova could be anywhere," Tifa reasoned.

Cloud thought of a resolution, "Let's split up then, like last time. Some of us will travel by foot...or buggy, while the others will take the Highwind. We'll cover more ground more thoroughly that way. The group on the Highwind will fly to Junon and spend the next couple days searching the city and village, since there'll be a lot of ground to cover there. The group traveling on land will stop at the places in-between here and Junon - Kalm, the Chocobo Farm, the Mythril Mines. In a few days, we'll meet back up in Junon and discuss what we've found. Then, we cross the sea."

"I call Highwind," Yuffie cheered. "There's no way in heck I'm doing all that walking!"

Tifa nodded, "Barret and I will travel by foot then. We've done this route before. We know where to go and what's in store along the way."

Cloud nodded, "Then, I'll fly with Cid, Shera and Yuffie. Does that sound good?"

"No, it actually doesn't sound good at all." Reno suddenly appeared from behind one of the houses, shouting towards them. "You're forgetting one big factor in this little travel itinerary - me."

"What?" Cloud asked the redhead, "You're coming, too?"

"Wait, really?" Yuffie asked. "He is?"

"You make that sound so surprising," Reno rolled his eyes and laughed.

Cloud shrugged, "I just didn't think you'd want to help us."

Reno laughed, "I didn't, until that crazy alien bitch tried to kill me and then things got personal. So, I'm all for seeking out a little bit of revenge on Jenova. If that means having to play nice with you all for the time being, then that's just how it's going to have to be."

"Wow, how lucky are we," Tifa said, shaking her head and then rolling her eyes.

"You're the luckiest of all, babe, cuz you'll get to spend more time with me," Reno winked at her.

"Ugh, perfect." She replied quickly.

Cloud looked at the friends after an awkward moment, before breaking the silence, "Okay, great. Reno, you'll travel with Barret and Tifa on foot."

"Yes!" "Ugh..." Reno and Tifa replied in unison after Cloud's descision.

Cloud turned to Reno, Tifa and Barret, "Reno, you know the route from here to Junon, too. You and your Turk friends were practically stalking us for most of our journey. So, just try to stay out of trouble and try not to cause any trouble yourself."

"Will do, can't promise anything though," Reno smirked.

Cloud nodded, strapping his sword to his back, "Okay, I guess we set off to save the planet again from here."

Barret smiled and pumped his fist in the air, "Hell yeah! We gonna do this whole damn thing again! Tifa, Reno and I'll take care of things and meet back up with you in a few days. If we run into trouble or come across anything, we'll be sure to PHS ya! So, don't lose your phone, ya spiky dumbass!"

Cloud patted the phone in his pocket, "Will do. We'll take care of Junon and the harbor. You guys be safe. Don't let Reno sidetrack you."

"We'll try not to," Tifa said, as she, Barret and Reno got into Barret's buggy.

Cloud watched as the vehicle made its way off through the streets of Edge. He turned back to Cid, Shera and Yuffie.

Yuffie began to walk down the street and turned back towards the others, "K. Guess it's time to start the ball rolling and get going, huh?"

"Highwind's parked right outside the city," Cid said. "We're ready to go whenever you are, Cloud."

Cloud nodded and thought for a moment. He looked down at the framed picture of Aerith that Elmyra had given him. He stared at the picture for a moment longer before he looked up at his friends.

"Wait. Before we go, there's someone waiting for me someplace. I have to meet them there."

Cid nodded.

* * *

A short distance outside of Edge, along the rolling hills and roads, the Highwind stopped until it hovered just above the endless flower fields that stretched as far as the eye could see.

A rope ladder was thrown down over the side of the deck and Cloud lifted himself over, descending down until his feet were planted firmly against the earth. Once there, he turned to face the flower fields, the yellow and white petals of the carnations swaying in the gentle breeze. He'd gone there again that day, just like he had done every day, to see her.

Like every time he'd been there before, with every step he took into the flower field, the world around him seemed to melt away and it was like he had stepped into a different world.

As the gentle breeze swept through the field, Cloud looked around him and called out, his voice echoing down through the grasslands. "Aerith!"

There was a long silence that passed, just the sound of the wind blowing through the fields and the distant humming of the Highwind behind him to be heard.

"Aerith," he called out again, but was met by silence. "Where are you?"

"Cloud!" On the other side of the field, Aerith had materialized as a green aura circled around her. Once he'd spotted her, the glow around her faded and she looked whole. "I heard you and I came as soon as I could."

"Aerith," he whispered out to himself, his eyes growing brighter when he saw her. He raced across the field to meet her on the other end. He stopped just a few feet in front of her and took a quick moment to catch his breath, "I'm sorry I missed seeing you yesterday, but I-I had a dream about you. It was of the night we first left Midgar to leave for our adventure."

"I guess you had a dream of your first adventure right before the next one would begin," Aerith giggled.

Cloud nodded, "Yeah, that's what I thought, too. Before leaving, I had to make sure to see you here. It's Jenova, she's-"

"I know, Cloud," she closed her eyes and lowered her head, as if sensing something. "When I left you the other day, I felt a strange disturbance within the planet. I couldn't tell what it was, but when she tried hurting you, that's when I realized she'd returned. I sensed you were in danger, I had to help you, Cloud."

"You did more than help me, Aerith," Cloud blushed and his eyes softened. "You saved me, again. You always do."

Aerith smiled and leaned forward, placing her hands behind her back. "You know, I enjoy being your bodyguard, too. I'll always protect you."

"I know," He blushed and smiled when his eyes met hers, "I had to come see you again before I left. I...I don't know when I'll be able to come back here again or how long this journey will last. I'm...I'll-I'll miss you."

She tilted and looked at him with admiration, "Cloud, even though we might not be here in 'our place', you know that wherever you go, I'm always with you."

Cloud reached into his vest and retrieved the flower he had found in front of her church the other day, the flower he had purchased from her the first moment they met. He looked up from the flower and smiled at her. "I know."

She inched closer to him, her hands reaching out to hold his arms. "I don't know what lies ahead or what Jenova plans to do, but I will be there to do what I can to help you and our friends."

"It'll be up to all of us to protect the planet like last time," he nodded and smirked. "I'll do everything I can to keep it safe."

Aerith smiled coyly to herself and blushed, her hands clasped behind her back as she swayed back and forth. Along with the rest of their friends, she couldn't help but notice the change in Cloud. The once cold and stoic soldier was no more, replaced by a brave man who'd risk it all to protect the planet without a second thought.

Her eyes met his. "Oh, Cloud..."

He raised an eyebrow, "Yeah?"

She shook her head and felt the crimson rising to her cheeks. She gently squeezed his arms, "I...I just...I..."

His eyes softened and his lips formed into a small smile.

She paused, feeling perhaps tongue-tied for the first time in her life. She felt the heat within her cheeks. "It...it just means so much to me that you're doing all of this."

"Well, it's because of you," said Cloud, honestly. "You've opened my eyes to a lot of things, Aerith. I'm doing this for the both of us."

Aerith nodded and smiled, "Let's go then, Cloud."

He smiled at her before turning around, looking out of the flower field and back towards the Highwind. He stayed there for a moment, looking up at the airship. "Aerith, I wish you could come with me, so I could give you that trip on the Highwind that I promised you."

Aerith leaned towards him and whispered, "It's like I said, I'm always with you." Her voice seemed to fade from around him and echoed within his heart, as she disappeared.

Cloud nodded and stared down at the flower in his hand.

He heard her voice echo from within his heart again, "Wherever you see flowers bloom, you'll find me there with you."

He nodded and slowly stepped his way out of the flower field, making his way back to the rope ladder that dangled from the Highwind. He began his slow ascent up, reaching the last few rungs, before Cid's voice came over the Highwind intercom.

"We ready to set sail, Cloud," Cid's raspy voice spoke.

"All set," Cloud said, climbing over the metal railing of the deck and beginning to pull the rope ladder up.

"All right then! We're gettin' outta here!"

Within a moment, the engines, machines and contols powering the Highwind soon began buzzing with activity and a moment later, the airship took off into the sky, blasting through the open air.

"Whoa," Cloud said, tightly gripping onto the railing, not quite anticipating the take off. The wind whipped through his spikes, as the blonde steadied his footing on the metal deck.

The Highwind soon balanced itself out against the air and flew smoothly through the sky.

"Alrighty, we'll be at Junon in no time," Cid's voice spoke again.

Cloud looked off over the side of the deck, watching the earth below begin growing farther and farther away. They passed over forests and the endless grasslands. Beyond that, he could make out the Chocobo farmlands and the twisting caverns and mountains of the Mythril Mines just beyond that.

Standing there, looking at the world below from above, he wanted nothing more than for Aerith to be standing there with him by his side.

It caused his heart to break when he thought of how he'd promised to take her on a trip aboard the Highwind one day, but he never got the chance to.

His thoughts were interrupted by Cid's voice over the intercom again. "Whoa, unusual sight, huh? Where the hell'd that come from?"

Cloud had been too distracted by his thoughts that he didn't even realize the amazing sight that surrounded the Highwind and floated down through the air.

He looked over the side of the deck and what he saw left him breathless and his heart soaring. Beautifully bloomed flowers, hundreds, in all types and colors, floated down from the skies above and encircled the Highwind, floating down back to the earth being carried by the wind.

It was like the Highwind was floating in a sea of beautiful petals that danced around the ship and flooded through the air. The beautiful blossoms grazed against Cloud's skin and circled around him, as if embracing him.

Cloud understood then. It was the start of this new adventure and he didn't know what was in store and what challenges were to be faced along the way.

But as the skies filled with beautiful flowers that floated around him, he smiled, because he knew that it was a sign that Aerith would be with him, always.


	4. Highwind

Thanks to everyone who's Read the story so far! This next chapter is quite long and really should be broken in two, but I enjoy writing long chapters! Hope you enjoy, please read and review!

 **Chapter Four - Highwind**

Cloud had made his way inside the Highwind and went towards the deck.

Cid sat in the pilot's seat in the cockpit, Shera at his side, analyzing a few of the computers, performing some routine checkup of all of the different control panels, as she closely monitored how they operated in flight. Although, Cid was the true expert when it came to operating an aircraft, Shera had learned much from Cid, adding much knowledge to her level of expertise. There were a few crew members running about the cockpit frantically, making sure everything was running properly.

One had almost bumped into Cloud in their frantic display, "Uoh! So sorry!"

"Damn it guys, I took care of everythin' already! The damn thing's flyin' just fine! Now sit your asses in one spot and wait til we get this thing back on the ground!" Cid shouted back to his crew.

Cloud took a spot at the large glass atrium at the front of the ship, which provided a great view of the plane's direction. Through the large glass window, Cloud could see the land before them pass by in the blink of an eye. From what he could see from the windows, it looked like they were about to start making their way over the mountainous range of the Mythril Mines.

"You take care of everythin' you needed to, Cloud?"

"Yeah. Thanks for waiting," said Cloud, giving the pilot a nod. "It was just something I needed to do before starting this new journey."

"Well, good. Gotta make sure that we're keepin' your damn self on track," Cid laughed, as he took a puff from his cigarette. "Speakin' of keepin' things on track, at the rate we're goin', we should be makin' it to Junon in maybe another hour or two. Might as well rest up in the cabins below before this whole thing gets underway."

"Sounds good," said Cloud, before looking around the room. "Hey, you guys haven't seen Yuffie around here, have you? I haven't run into her since we boarded."

"Heh, I wouldn't mind if we left her behind," Cid laughed.

"Now, Cid, behave yourself. You're always picking on poor Yuffie," Shera defended.

"Yeah, after she starts #$% with me first," the pilot retorted, almost shouting from the control panel.

"Temper, Cid," Shera hummed, delicately handling her husband. She turned to Cloud, "I saw Yuffie get onboard. She's here...somewhere. Who knows where she's hidden herself? She usually hangs around the deck or the Meeting Room. She usually stays in one place since she's got a bad case of motion sickness."

Cloud nodded and recalled, "Ah, that's right. I remember now. Last time, she nearly got sick all over me. On second thought, maybe I should steer clear til we land."

"Yeah, better not go makin' a mess around this beauty," Cid warned. "I practically replaced this baby piece by piece and I'm gonna have it all get ruined by the likes of you and that other one pukin' your guts up everywhere."

Cloud gave a short chuckle and crossed his arms, "He treats this thing like it's his new baby."

"Yup!" Cid shouted.

Shera rolled her eyes and placed a hand on her stomach, "Well, let's hope he has the same admiration and motivation when his 'new baby' actually does arrive."

"We can only hope," said the blonde soldier.

Shera looked up and saw Cloud was looking a bit uncomfortable. "Well, not to delve back into the topic of Yuffie's motion sickness, but you're looking a little pale yourself, Cloud. Are you feeling alright?"

He brushed it off and wiped his forehead, "Uh, yeah. I've never really enjoyed all the rockiness that came with traveling, either."

"Maybe you should go lie down? We'll get you when we land," Shera suggested.

"Yeah. Thanks."

Cloud exited the room and begin making his way through the main chamber of the Highwind that led to all other parts of the ship. With the back and forth of the Highwind's motion starting to agitate him, he really just wanted to get somewhere where the rocking of the plane wouldn't bother him.

Now that he thought about it, resting up did sound good. He couldn't remember the last time he'd gotten a good night's sleep.

He made his way through the Maintenance Bay on his way to the cabins below, when he was stopped by Yuffie calling out to him.

"Hey, Cloud. Looks like I'm not the only one bored out of mind on this thing," Yuffie said from the Meeting Room.

Yuffie sat at the end of a long wooden table in the center of the room. The Meeting Room wasn't anything too special, just a meeting space where Cid and the others would have regular meetings before takeoff. Cloud and his friends would also use the space to regroup and plan the next steps of their adventure. There were several chairs scattered around the table, while the metal walls remained fairly plain and bare. Cloud found the young ninja spinning around in one of the chairs, with a fairly bored expression on her face.

"You know, the spinning probably isn't too good for your motion sickness..." Cloud stepped into the room and took a seat at one of the chairs at the table. "And I heard from Cid's mouth himself, he doesn't want any accidents."

"Oh, who cares what Gramps wants, anyway?" Yuffie took a big spin in her chair, circling around a few times. "Besides, the rocking isn't too bad in this room."

Cloud realized she was right when he noticed that he didn't feel as woozy and disoriented as he had moments before. "So, what are you doing in here all on your own?"

"What's it to ya?" Yuffie scrunched her eyebrows and shot him a sarcastic glance. "What? Are you afraid I'm up to no good? I've been fighting alongside you for three years. If I was up to no good, you would know by now. Which I'm not."

"Yeah, coming from the same girl, who stole all our materia, Gil and possessions, only to high-tail it back to her home and send us on a wild goose chase," Cloud smirked and crossed his arms.

"Okay, that happened one time and I apologized for it!" Yuffie playfully defended and stood up from the chair. "Besides, if I wanted to steal some crappy materia, some second-rate potions and cheap equipment off of you, I would have done it already."

Cloud opened his mouth to speak, but instead, tilted his head in silence. She did have a point there, after all.

"So, just accept that I can actually be a genuine friend in the long run and I'm not out to get anyone," Yuffie said in a sing-song tone. "Hey, at least I'm more of a friend than Reno and you didn't seem to mind him tagging along on this journey with us."

He nodded, "You got a point there."

There was a brief silence that passed between the two. The ninja sighed and turned back to Cloud, "So, do you really think that we could do this again?"

Cloud nodded, "I think so. We've done it before."

"To be honest, when I heard that we might go on another mission, I actually got really excited! Going on missions, pilfering stuff, almost getting killed, that's a freakin' awesome time for me!" Yuffie laughed and sat back down in a different chair. "I don't know, it was just a lot of fun on our last go-around."

"So, what would you be doing instead if you weren't here?" Cloud asked.

"You know, I don't really know," Yuffie thought out loud and sighed, taking a spin in the chair. "I can't live with Cid and Shera forever, you know. Especially when the baby's coming soon. Not that I'd want to deal with all that anyway. Having a roof over my head is nice, I suppose, but I'd be too much of a hassle for them."

Cloud thought to himself and smirked, 'Hm, at least she KNOWS she can be a hassle.'

Yuffie continued, almost half-heartedly speaking her thoughts, "Now that I think about it, I really don't know what I'd do. I liked Edge, but Tifa would never allow me to stay at the Seventh Heaven after last time."

"Yeah, that much is true."

"HEY! Hey! I wasn't too bad. Not really." The ninja laughed, "Don't tell her, but when I got kicked out of that place, I was so mad at Tifa!"

"Yuffie, I was there. I saw. You stole the money from the cash register and then slammed the door on your way out. You should be glad that Tifa didn't hold a grudge against you for that."

The ninja defended, "Yeah, not exactly one of my better moments. But come on, that's what I do! I ended up giving the money back...later...I think." She nervously laughed and brushed the topic off, "I suppose I'll just have to think of somewhere else to go."

"Have you ever thought about going back to Wutai?" Cloud asked.

"Gawd, never! Never, ever! I'd have to be dragged back there kicking and screaming," Yuffie let out a heavy sigh. "If I ever do end up back there, my father will just drive me away again. It's what he does, what he's been doing for the past couple years now."

"That must suck," said the blonde.

Yuffie shrugged, "You've met him. He's the big hotshot of Wutai and he's been that way for awhile, but recently he's started really pressuring me to follow in his footsteps. He's taken his position overseeing Wutai so seriously. He's such a stuck-up, royal snob and wants to make me into the same and...well, I just don't care about any of that stuff."

Cloud had realized that this was probably the most he had ever talked to Yuffie since they'd met, but they had nothing but time to waste. He continued, "Why? It'd seem like a pretty easy life."

"Are you kidding me? I don't want to be 'Ms. Prim and Proper of Wutai'. What is that? Lame. He's all for the riches and power. I'm all for stealing it. I don't want to be the mature role model for all the kiddos back at home, I don't even think I'm cut out for that," she explained. "If I do end up playing some role in Wutai, It'll be what I want to do and on my terms."

"Well, at least you have a father that tries to make something out of you, as annoying as it might be," said Cloud, as he scratched the back of his head. "I never even knew mine."

"Ever?" Yuffie stopped spinning.

"No," the blonde shook his head. "He died when I was still just a baby and so my mom was the one who took care of me in Nibelheim. She didn't like talking about him too much. It must have made her really sad and upset."

"Now, _that_ must suck. But I've been through that, too," the ninja said, without dwelling too much further on the subject. She spun around in the chair, "Now, look at us having so much in common. I guess crappy parental connections run common."

"Hey, at least you still have a father," said Cloud.

"Well, I really wished it felt that way," Yuffie said. "I don't think my father really gets me. He could give me hundreds of materia and I still wouldn't want to live the way he wants me to. It's created so many problems between us." She finished with a smirk, "Just give me a few years to mature and decide what I'm gonna do with myself."

"Sure, if it'll take that long."

The two felt a shift in the Highwind, as it rocked against the air, the tables in the room slightly turning with the motion of the airship.

Cloud shook his head, a bit disoriented.

"Man, when is Cid going to learn how to fly this heap of junk," the ninja complained.

The blonde shrugged and scratched the back of his head, "I'm gonna go to one of the cabins and try to rest for a little bit. It'll be better than staying here and probably getting sick."

"Okay. See ya later, Cloud."

Cloud made his way back into the Maintenance Bay and went down a small flight over stairs that led beneath the large space. There, he slid open the metal door that led to an open hall, where four other doors were located. Three of the doors led to small cabin rooms where there was a small bed, while the last door led to a bathroom.

He slid open one of the doors and stepped inside. The cabins were small - very small and compact. Right inside of the cabin, the bed was right at the foot of the door, leaving room to only climb into the bed and shut the door once you were fully inside. Given that there was only so much space to have on the Highwind, the group was lucky that Cid added them in when he had renovated the ship, as this resting place was not a necessity to have onboard. There was a window to the side of the bed, which Cloud had kept closed most of the time. It didn't help him ease his nerves of motion sickness one bit.

Cloud made his way into the bed and slipped under the thin covers of the blankets. He tried to push the unnerving feeling as the Highwind rocked his body back and forth along with the motion of the plane. He let out a deep sigh and closed his eyes, deciding it'd be better to just try and rest while he could.

It wasn't long before the blonde had relaxed and found himself drifting off to sleep.

* * *

"Well, looking around the city was rather stupid, don't you think?" Reno said, kicking his foot along the pavement as he, Barret and Tifa made their way back to Barret's buggy. "It was stupid thinking Jenova would cause any more trouble here when she clearly set off days ago."

After they departed Marlene and Denzel with Elmyra at her home, Barret, Tifa and Reno had spent the last two hours looking for signs of Jenova or unusual activity in Edge, but they didn't find a thing.

"It's all part of the job, Reno," Tifa said back to him.

"Yeah, yeah, I know that," Reno said. "Still, what a waste of a morning. At this rate, Cloud and the others are probably already landed in Junon."

"Calm your ass down, man!" Barret said, taking the buggy's keys out from his pocket. "At least the rest of the city is doin' fine, we'll just have to make up some time gettin' to Kalm by the end of the day."

"Well, isn't it possible that this entire search could be one, big, wild goose chase?" Reno said, alerting the other two. "Jenova can shapeshift and transform into anything, right? Last time you faced her, half the time, wasn't she taking the form of Sephiroth?"

"She was, or she...was being controlled by him or something," Tifa thought out, placing a finger on her chin. "Still, us sitting around doing nothing isn't going to change that she's still out there, regardless of what she may or may not be."

"She's right", said Barret, opening the buggy and stepping in. "So, get your ass in the car and let's move."

Reno sighed, opening the side door for Tifa to get in. "I guess, but back on the matter, how do I know that you're really Barret and not some dangerous monster that's leading me to my death?"

"Cuz if I wanted to kill your ass, I woulda done it already," said Barret. "And that's ME talkin'! Not some crazy #%$& alien!"

"Okay, okay, you're you! I get it. Just making sure," said Reno, throwing his hands up in defense. He nervously laughed, "So, where are we headed to now?"

"Now, we leave Edge and head for Kalm Town," Tifa answered and pulled out a map of the nearby areas surrounding Edge. "If we move fast enough and don't run into any trouble, we should make it there by sundown, hopefully."

"And we should move quickly," said Barret, as he placed the keys in the ignition and started the buggy. "We gotta meet up with the others in Junon in three days and at the rate we're goin', it's gonna take a lot more than that!"

"So, we reach Kalm, look around for a little bit, maybe gather some clues and then call it a night there, right?" Reno suggested, "I'm sure they'll be able to give us a room in the town inn."

"Nope, we keep movin'," Barret replied.

"Huh, how come?" Tifa asked, sounding a bit disappointed.

"We got a lot of ground to cover, Tifa. We'll be spendin' the whole day travelin' today and if we can buy ourselves some time, we should try and start some of the route towards the Chocobo farmland," said Barret.

"Yeah, I guess you're right," Tifa said, nodding. They did have a lot to do in a short period of time and it's not like this was a leisurely vacation. Still, she was always fond of Kalm and found the quiet town charming.

"Besides, we might end up needin' to catch a few of those damn chocobos ourselves and who knows how long that'll take. We'll need 'em to make it across the swampy marsh near Mythril."

"Wow, you have this all planned out, huh," Tifa remarked. "Look at you, finally gettin' to be the leader."

"Finally gettin' to be? I've always been the leader," Barret smirked.

"So, we'll be camping out tonight, then?" Reno asked.

Self-appointed leader of the three, Barret, started to move the buggy forward down the street, heading towards the highway that led out of the city. "You got it! Unless ya'll are okay with gettin' no rest at all and continuin' on straight into tomorrow!"

"No! Ugh, no...no, thanks!" Reno said, "Camping sounds...like a blast."

Tifa thought about it and smiled, "I think we'll be alright if we camp out just for one night, right?"

"Right," Barret concluded.

"Why do I feel like this is going to be a wild goose chase that goes horribly, horribly wrong?" Reno sighed and lowered his head.

"It'll go horribly wrong if I hear one more word outta you!" Barret laughed, "So, Reno, where are your little dumbass buddies at?"

"The Turks? I have no idea."

"Do they know that you're with us now?" Tifa asked.

"Don't think so. I tried getting a hold of Rude, but he hasn't picked up the damn phone, not that he'd say much anyway, but hey," Reno explained. "Last I saw of them was a few nights ago before my accident, but I'm sure Rufus is keeping them busy with God knows what. I could care less, to be honest."

Tifa raised an eyebrow at the redhead, "Really? Since when have you switched sides?"

"I haven't. I'm still a Turk through and through, okay? I'm going to lend a hand to help out when I can, but don't get to cozy," He smirked and flashed a smile at Tifa. "Unless you feel like getting cozy, then I'm all yours, babe."

"Ugh," Tifa scoffed.

"Even the Turks with Rufus' help are thinking of a way to stop Jenova. We're on your side this time...for now, at least."

"Heh, you bein' a good guy and helpin' out? Ha, I believe it when I see it," Barret let out a laugh at Reno.

Reno rolled his eyes, "Look, I wanna stay around on this planet for a few more years just like everybody else, okay? I'm sure Rufus and the other Turks feel the same. So, if me and the others wanna lend a hand, just accept it before we start trying to kill you again."

"Same here," Barret shot back. "We can share an alliance...for now."

"Sure, sure. And I'll promise not to try and kill you," Reno shot back. "For now."

Tifa sunk into her seat and sighed, "Oh, this is going to be a long day."

The three set off as the buggy steered clear from Edge and made its way down the roads that twisted and curved through the grasslands that led towards Kalm Town.

* * *

As the Highwind soon hovered over Junon, there was a thick mask of pollution that seemed to hover in the air above the city.

Junon was located right on the edge of the continent, practically jutting out of the earth like it's own formation.. Due to its' convenient location, Junon was known as a common port for both air and sea travel. On the outskirts of the city, there was a loading dock for ships and, above the city, a landing runway for planes and jets. Over time, Junon became a city that held a massive role in the import and export of goods across the world with the usage of cargo ships and planes.

However, with the increased rate of transportation and production, the more fuels, coals and energy power it took to operate, causing Junon to fall into a state of overwhelming pollution not too long ago. While the parts of the city that were located by the loading docks remained contained, the harbor at the base of the city had been greatly affected. There seemed to be a constant smog in the air above, which looked as bad as it smelled. The fishing town seemed dismal and the beach leading to the ocean had become polluted and dangerous to swim in.

Since that time, however, the condition of Junon Harbor had greatly improved. The pollution throughout the city had been reduced and the citizen's took action to make their small town a better place, regardless of how Shinra had already destroyed parts of it. They had built new homes, relied less on technology and did a great job cleaning up the beach and the surrounding waters of the harbor, though they were still met with their challenges.

The Highwind descended and landed down on the landing platform at the top of the city. Soon after, Cid came over the intercom and stated that they would be able to depart from the plane in a few minutes afternoon some routine checks were taken care of.

When the rumbling engines of the airship had stopped, Cloud's eyes slowly opened.

He lifted his head from the pillow and raised a hand to his face, rubbing his tired eyes. For a moment, he didn't even realize where he was. He had actually had a pretty decent rest and felt very comfortable. He didn't realize how tired he really was until he finally had a chance to lie down. When he looked outside of the cabin window, he could see the other air crafts parked around the landing platform.

Cloud lifted himself off of the bed and ran a hand through his hair that had been flattened down by the pillow. He left the hall of cabins and proceeded through the Maintenance Bay and back to the cockpit. Once there, Cid, Shera and Yuffie were already waiting for him.

"Hey Cloud, what's been keeping you," asked Yuffie.

"Sorry. I must have overslept," Cloud shrugged.

"It's alright. We're ready to head into the village whenever you're ready," Shera said.

The four of them had departed the Highwind and made their way down the plane's ramp that descended down onto the landing platform. There were a few other planes and jets parked along the runway, but none of them matched the sheer size and scale of the Highwind. It was quite unlike any other airship in existence. They made their way towards the elevator shaft located at the far end of the runway. The elevator platform was what separated Junon's city from the harbor and village, which had suffered the brunt of the pollution and poverty that affected Junon.

In some ways, Junon was very similar to what Midgar was like a few years ago. One part of the city was filled with wealthier people who could afford to live there, big company agents and employees and citizens that were closely tied to the Shinra Company, while the other half was filled with many poor or homeless families that were barely getting by, unsavory areas and societal problems.

When the elevator had reached the bottom and Cloud and the others exited, they were surprised to see that the condition of the harbor had somewhat been greatly improved from how the area used to be affected. The entire village surrounding the harbor seemed to evolve from the quiet, gloomy town to a quaint, small fishing village that connected to the beach and harbor. The harbor and oceans that were just outside of the village and its houses provided resources, jobs and food for the people of Junon and was essential to its' peoples' daily lives.

"Well, check this place out! It's lookin' a lot better than the last time we were here," Yuffie said, excitedly running towards the fountain that was located in the village center.

"Yeah, the village isn't as...dull as I remember it being," Cloud said, following after the ninja.

"This place looks great! Hey, do we have time to go swimming on the beach," Yuffie asked.

"This isn't a vacation, Yuffie," Cloud said simply. "If you want to go, that's fine. I'm not interested."

"Ugh! Don't be such a lame!" The ninja said, starting to march her way towards the village inn.

"Yuffie, hold on. Just remember that we're on an important mission," the blonde protested.

The ninja sighed and rolled her eyes, turning back to the soldier. "Cloud, you're no fun! Let loose and get out for a little while. It'll do you some good. I know we got a lot of work to do ahead of us, but if we don't at least enjoy the places we're at while we're there, this is gonna be one miserable time."

While the two continued to talk, Cid and Shera made the way towards the inn, looking to get some lodging accommodations for the next couple of days.

"Yuffie, the mission just started. Maybe I'll 'get out' a little later. Right now, I just want to focus on Jenova."

"Okay, Cloud! Though if you change your mind, you know where we'll be!" Yuffie said to Cloud, before racing to catch up with Cid and Shera.

'Crazy girl.' Cloud thought to himself about the ninja, before beginning to make his way around the village.

He was very impressed with the transformation that he had seen. While it wasn't necessarily a beach paradise like Costa del Sol was, it was the charming setting of the village that made this place unlike any other. He continued to take a look around the shops and buildings, not really noting anything out of the ordinary in particular.

Cloud remembered his previous encounters with Jenova. She wasn't one to hide and play games with her prey. If she was near, she would have been found soon.

Cloud decided to take the elevator back up to the city above. He still had a lot of time left in the day and he wanted to spend it productively, at least more productively than Yuffie and Cid were doing at the beach.

The blonde exited the elevator platform and made his way through the hall that led towards the rest of the city. While Junon's city was expansive with many streets and alleys to search, Cloud was lucky to have a lot of time on his hands. The group would still have to wait until Barret, Tifa and Reno made it to Junon in a few days, anyway, which gave him ample time to search.

Once at the city, Cloud discovered that much of it was exactly how he remembered it. There were tall buildings that made up the skyline of the city, consisting of company offices and apartments. There had once been a large cannon that was placed at the front of the city, operating as a major defense to the city, but ever since Weapon's attack three years prior, the cannon had been moved over to Midgar, where it was later destroyed and dismantled. Cloud still wasn't quite used to seeing the city with this large piece missing from it.

He continued to walk the streets, not having any main destination to head to, but after all, this was a search and with no leads that pointed him to Jenova, he didn't have much else to do. He made his way down one of the street alleys and exited onto the opposite street, where he saw two mean walking past.

His attention was caught when he heard the passing conversation.

"Did you see what happened back there? Who were those two and why would they be going there?"

"When do you even think someone was last down there?"

"Who knows? But they must have known the way inside cuz that thing was sealed off."

Cloud's curiosity was piqued and he raced after the two men. He called out to them, "Hey! I'm sorry, I overheard what you were talking about. What was going on?"

The two turned back to Cloud, "Oh, nothing. Just two strange looking fellas making their way to the underwater reactor."

"They knew the access code and everything to override security," the man laughed. "They were probably scum once hired by Shinra. Ugh, something scary about one of 'em."

Cloud lowered his eyes, it couldn't have been Jenova then. "Did it look like they were up to no good?"

The other man shook his head, "No, not really. Just two men who looked like they knew where they were going."

"Okay, I got it." Cloud nodded, as the two men departed, "Thanks."

Cloud crossed his arms and closed his eyes. It seemed like nothing was out of the ordinary. Even things that could have been potential leads were nothing sinister or related to Jenova. As much as Cloud wanted to keep searching, he couldn't help but feel like he was wasting his time. Even if he did come across Jenova, would he even be able to finish her off on his own right then and there?

Probably not, he told himself. He decided to call it quits, at least for the time being.

As guilty as he felt, maybe taking some of Yuffie's advice to get out and do something fun was worthwhile.

Though, Cloud didn't know what was scarier - slacking off on his mission to stop Jenova or taking advice from Yuffie.

'An hour at the beach won't hurt, right," Cloud convinced himself. 'But I have to put in extra work tomorrow.'

* * *

It was just before sunset when Barret, Tifa and Reno had made it to Kalm Town after a day of traveling. They'd been lucky that they hadn't run into too many interruptions along the way. Though, they did have their fair share of run-ins with fiends and prowling creatures who attempted to attack their buggy, causing the three to have to exit and fight occasionally. Still, they made quick work of the opponents and would continue along their break, stopping every so often to rest a bit, while also giving Barret a break from the wheel. They parked the buggy outside of the village and made their way inside while there was still some daylight.

As the warm sunset cast an orange glow over the rooftops of the city, Tifa stepped forward and admired the sight. The village was just as she had remembered it from the last time she was here. Truthfully, not much had changed about the landscape of the planet over the past three years, but some of the cities themselves had transformed. Places like Junon and Mideel had improved, others like Midgar had been devastated and felt more like an abandoned ghost town now. Then, there were the smaller towns and villages in-between like Kalm Town, Icicle Inn and Gongaga, which felt unchanged for as long as they'd existed.

Tifa walked along the cobblestone paths of the village, admiring the small houses and the charming markets in the town square. The young barmaid let out a sigh at the sight. The houses and buildings were small, but very comfortable and cozy. Each roof of the buildings were fitted with blue and gray shingles that draped down the sides of the triangular rooftops. The town's sidewalks were aligned with flickering lanterns, almost making it appear as some picturesque fairytale village. There was a tall clock tower at the back end of the town which stood taller than any of the other buildings in the village.

Life was simple in Kalm. The people led simple lives, without the concern of fiends on the prowl or the Shinra swooping in to cause some trouble to their little village. It was a simple, peaceful place to live, which is why Tifa had come to admire it so, especially after having lived in places like Nibelheim and Midgar, which were stricken with their own problems.

"Made it," said Barret, following behind his friend. He called out to both Tifa and Reno, "Okay, you two, listen up! Let's try not to take too long here. We ain't done just yet and still have a bit of travelin' to do tonight, so make a clean sweep of this place to look for any clues and then we head out."

"Roger," said Reno. "This town isn't too big, anyway. Just on the other side of the village, there's a tiny marketplace with a few shops and whatnot. The shop owners over there might have a bit of information they can give us."

Barret nodded, "Good usin' your head for once, Reno. Let's get movin'."

"Are you sure we can't stay for the night," Tifa asked, sounding a bit disappointed.

Barret shook his head and crossed his arms, "Sorry, Tifa. We gotta head out in a bit. It's already gettin' late and we have to be gettin' to Junon in two days to meet back up with Cloud. We still got a whole lotta land in-between here and there, too, so no time for extra resting."

Tifa was a bid disappointed, but she understood. Besides, after this mission was over, she hoped that she would have many opportunities to get to go back there. She crossed her arms and smirked, "Well, okay. Whatever our 'leader' requests of us."

"That's what I like to hear. Now, let's get this show on the road," Barret cheered on.

Barret had led Tifa and Reno through the village, taking a quick walk around the area.

"I'm starting to think we're just going to end up running around the entire damn planet while Jenova slowly kills us all," said Reno.

Barret continued for him, "Well, we're not gonna let that happen. If there's one thing for sure with Jenova bein' around, things'll get shaken up real quick! Like at Shinra Headquarters years ago, the cargo ship in Junon, #%$ goin' crazy at the Temple of the Ancients and the northern crater. If she was here, somethin' would turn up sooner or later."

"Eh, I don't know. You just keep tellin' yourself that, big guy," the redhead said. "Why would she come to a sleepy, little place like this anyway? Not too much going on around here."

"I think it'll be like this for each of our stops until we get closer to her. I can't imagine that she'll be taking up shelter in the chocobo farms we'll be visiting tomorrow or in the Mythril Mines. That place is crawling with creepy things, so...she might fit at home there, actually," Tifa said, peeking around one of the corners of the buildings. The marketplace was fairly empty, even with all of the shops still open.

"Well, let's just keep the search up," Barret suggested. "I'm gonna look around the town for jus' a little bit more. Tifa, why don't you go askin' around the shops to see if anyone's seen anythin'. Reno, you jus' make your damn self useful.

"Got it," Reno said, before heading off towards the marketplace.

Tifa looked as Reno made his way off. She turned back to Barret, "Where do you suppose he's off to?"

"Who knows?" Barret smirked at Tifa, "But let's get back to the buggy and leave him here before he realizes it."

"Right," she laughed, before making her way off into one of the stores at the back of the village.

Tifa had come across a few of the shops and carts in the marketplace. She had some brief conversations with a few of the shop owners, trying to gather any new information or clues on the whereabouts of Jenova, but as she'd suspected, they'd come up with nothing, each saying how those types of creatures don't come to Kalm.

She made her way to the items shop, which was the last store for her to look at in the village. She entered in and was greeted by an older woman who worked there. Reno was also off to the side of the store, staring at a few racks of potions and phoenix downs.

"Hey there, good lookin'," Reno smirked.

Tifa rolled her eyes at him. "Hey."

"Hello, miss. How are you? How can I help you?" The kind shop owner asked her.

Tifa smiled up at her, "I'm fine, thank you. Um, yes, I was actually just wondering if you had any information that might be able to help me."

"Of course, my dear."

"Has there been any unusual sightings happening around Kalm? Anything out of the ordinary that you've seen? Anything at all," Tifa asked.

"Hm, I couldn't say," the old woman said. "Everything's been normal these past few days."

Reno smirked, gathering a few items in his arms, more items than what looked like he could carry. "See? I told you, she's not gonna be here."

The old woman asked, "Are you and your friend looking for someone?"

Reno turned from the shelves and nudged Tifa in the side with his elbow, "Hear that? We're 'friends' now. Look at how quick we're making progress."

"Ugh, we are not friends," Tifa grimaced and turned back to the old woman. "But, um, yes, we are looking for someone. We were just wondering if anyone in town would have anything they could tell us."

The old woman turned from the counter and went to the shelf behind her that was stocked with items. "No, I'm sorry, dear. I'm afraid I'm no help to you, but if there's anything I can do to help you, I'm certain I would."

Tifa nodded and smiled, "Thank you."

The sound of the shop door slamming behind them caused both Tifa and the old shop owner to jump. They both turned to find that Reno had fled from the store, an armful of stolen items and goods unpaid for.

The old woman's face grew, a mixture of sadness, anger and betrayal setting in. "Oh, my. It seems like your friend has made off."

Tifa stared back at the door in shock and then turned back at the woman. She apologized excessively, "I'm-I'm so sorry! I know how it looks, but I had no idea he was going to do this! I should have known better than to trust him! I'm so sorry! I'll find him and bring him right back!"

The barmaid stormed out of the shop and kicked her feet in frustration when she saw Reno running towards the edge of town and back to the buggy with all of the stolen items in his arms.

"Reno!" She called after him, quickly running after the man, "Reno! Stop!"

"Don't be so loud," Reno shouted back, getting back to the buggy, where he caught his breath for a moment. "You don't want to get caught, do you?"

"Caught?" Tifa's eyes grew wide. She stopped to catch her breath when she caught up to him, "What the heck's the matter with you? We're barely in town for five minutes and you're already causing an issue? We didn't even have any time to track down any clues about Jenova."

"Well, that's what Barret is for! I'm sure he'll find something if there is something to find," Reno defended, before opening the buggy and piling the items inside. "Besides, I was just helping us out! My little 'stunt' probably just saved us a ton of Gil and all these goods will last a week. You really should be thanking me!"

"Thanking you?" She mocked and placed her hands on her hips, "You're a thief! You're worse than Yuffie. That nice woman was just trying to help us out and you pay her back by stealing from her? I'd like to come back to this town some day and you might have just risked that warm welcome."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever," Reno sighed and rolled his eyes, passively disregarding the subject.

"These types of backhanded moves might have worked when you were back in the Turks, but you're not with them anymore, at least not right now." Tifa angrily stared him down, before turning her back to him. "If you're going to be in our group, then you need to stop acting like a Turk and start helping us instead of causing problems."

Reno crossed his arms and leaned up against the buggy, "Oh, so now I'm a part of the group, am I?"

She turned back to him. "I'm sorry?"

"I thought I was the one that showed up and ruined everything? I thought I was the one that wanted to help out but was met with nothing but angry groans and sneers from you when I hadn't even done anything?"

Tifa was a bit taken aback by him. It sounded like he was genuinely getting upset, and an honest Reno was not something she knew how to react to.

"Let's face it, Tifa, you haven't wanted me here or as a part of your little group since the beginning! You've never trusted me in the first place, ever since I blew up that Sector Seven pillar, destroyed your bar and killed your friends..." Reno paused and thought for a moment, "...which is a completely reasonable reaction, now that I think about it."

"Exactly," she said.

"Well, that was the past, this is now," Reno defended, his voice getting louder. "If you're not gonna forgive me and move past it, then fine, but don't start preaching to me about the values of trust and friendship when you want neither from me!"

Her voice rose to match his, "You're damn right I don't!"

"Well, good, because something tells me you make a #$&% friend anyway."

A moment passed as Tifa's mouth fell open. "Excuse me?"

"I didn't stutter. I have eyes and ears, I think you're a sucky friend, to Cloud, to everyone you've tried to be 'buddy-buddy' with," Reno said, this argument suddenly reaching a boiling point. "I think you're still trying to find out what being a friend is in the first place. Hate to break it to you, but it's a little late in the game, Tifa!"

She stared at him, as if she'd just been physically attacked. Her mouth shut, but her lips trembled still as she felt the sting of tears fill her eyes. "I'd love nothing more than to punch you in the face right now."

Reno shrugged and threw his arms down, "Do it."

Nothing but the silent air passed between them then. The silence was only ever broken by the occasional breeze of wind that rustled its' way through the grasslands. Tifa shook her head and turned from him.

Reno crossed his arms, "That's what I thought."

She suddenly turned back and punched him hard across his face, sending the man to the ground. She watched as Reno landed hard and let out a pained groan. The redhead clutched his now bloody nose, collecting the redness in his hands as it trailed down past his lips. He looked up at her, "What the hell!?"

"You offered. I took it," Tifa said.

Reno clutched his nose, "Feel better?"

She thought for a moment, before finally nodding, "Yeah, a little."

"Good, because I don't."

"What the hell is the matter with the both of you!?" Barret said, running up to the two of them, an angry pout on his lips. "I oughta knock the both of you out for actin' like a bunch of dumbass kids! Get it together, will ya!?"

"I didn't start it," Tifa and Reno both defended at the same time, before looking at each other a bit embarrassed.

"I don't give a flying fat rat's ass who the hell did what! If we start tearin' each other apart before we even get to Jenova, there's no way we'll be winnin' this fight," Barret concluded.

"He's right," Reno nodded, wiping the remaining blood from his upper lip. He turned to Tifa and shrugged, "...Sorry."

Tifa remained silent and crossed her arms, turning to Barret. "Anyway, did you find out anything?"

"As a matter of fact, I did. I don't know how much help it'll be for us, but it might be somethin'," said Barret. "Turns out one of crazy Chocobo Billy's stable boys was in town. Says somethin' ripped through the Chocobo farms and started causin' a mess of thing. Whatever it was, it seemed to have a big appetite for them poor birds."

Tifa placed a finger on her chin, "That couldn't have been Jenova, could it?"

"Who knows what that creepy thing is into?" Barret continued, "Whatever it is, it ain't soundin' pretty good. We should get a move on because that's where we're goin' next."

"Right. We still have a bit to go before we call it a night. Until next time then, Kalm," Tifa said, opening the buggy door.

Before Reno could step inside, Tifa grabbed him by the shoulder. He turned back to him.

"Nuh-uh. You're not getting in there until you return those items back to that nice woman," Tifa said.

"Ugh, seriously," Reno groaned.

"Seriously. Once you do, then...I might consider apologizing for hitting you," Tifa said quickly.

The redhead gave an over-exaggerated sigh and then lowered his head in defeat. "Fine, but that better be a damn good apology." He got out of the car and gathered all of the pilfered items, slowly making his way back through the town like a guilt-ridden child.

"Move faster," Tifa shouted at him, her lips finally cracking into a small smile as Reno flipped her off.

Barret turned from them and placed his hand on his forehead. He sighed, "Oh, Lord. This is gonna be a long trip."

* * *

It was later on in the afternoon when Cloud had made it back to the inn at the edge of the harbor's village. The trek back had been long and uncomfortably warm, especially for the summer. By the time he had made it back inside his cool, air-conditioned room, a layer of sweat had already formed on his arms. He figured a trip to the beach and being surrounded by the open ocean waves couldn't hurt.

Cloud kicked off his heavy boots and went to his bag that was dropped off on his bed earlier in the day. He ruffled through it for a little bit before he found a pair of black shorts that he had packed with him. He kept his dark blue vest on and went to the bathroom to grab one of the towels before heading out.

The blonde exited his room and made his way down the stone steps that led down from the inn and towards the beach. The ground was hot underneath Cloud's feet, to the point where it stung, but didn't necessarily hurt. Thankfully, the beach was right next to the inn, so traveling along the hot ground was going to be short-lived. Once he got to the beach, he saw Cid and Shera in a set of beach chairs under an umbrella a short distance away. He made his way across the burning sand, which became much hotter with every step he took.

"Hey. Mind if I join you?" Cloud asked, as he approached Cid and Shera.

"Nope, find a spot," said Cid.

Cloud nodded and spread out his towel by them. He looked around the beach as he settled down, "Where's Yuffie? She said she'd be down here."

Cid pointed out into the ocean, "Eh, she's been out there for an hour already."

The blonde soldier looked up and saw the ninja far out into the open waters, jumping over the waves, as some of them crashed over her small form. She darted back and forth across the water, as splashes flew in every direction while she made machine gun noises and bomb-dropping sounds. She appeared to be having a blast on her own and didn't need anyone else to have fun.

"I've been hopin' one of those waves comes in and just sweeps the little brat away and she doesn't come back," said Cid with a laugh, as he took another puff from his cigarette.

Shera playfully slapped Cid on the shoulder as a light-hearted means of trying to get him to be nicer or just drop the subject entirely.

Once settled, Cloud went to lie down on his back, the sun beating down on him. One of his arms draped around his stomach, while the other he used to cover his eyes from the brilliantly bright sunlight. He groaned out, "Damn, it's hot."

Cid huffed, "You could always take off your shirt, you know. It'll make you less irritable and save me the trouble of haulin' your dehydrated ass to the hospital."

"No, thank you," Cloud said back.

"What? Too embarrassed to show off your scrawny body?" Cid laughed.

Cloud rolled his eyes and shook his head, turning to Cid to defend himself, "Hey, I've got muscle. I just don't need to show it."

Cid laughed, "Heh heh, whatever you say."

It was true, while Cloud may have not been the tallest of men at only 5'8, he was definitely well-built, strong and muscled. While he would have wanted to admit that some of his strength might have been because of the Shinra experiments performed on him years earlier, he kept up with his own training and exercises, staying at the top of his physical prowess out of his own will and keeping his body in shape. While Cloud's chest was broad and strong, his stomach was well-defined and his arms were large and all muscle, that didn't mean he enjoyed showing it off. He was very shy and self-conscious, after all and no one had ever seen him without an inch of clothing missing.

Cid let out a whistle and perked up, turning to Cloud as a curvy redhead walked along the beach. The pilot eyed the curly-haired redhead as she walked by. "Damn, that's a body on her. What do you think, Cloud?"

"I think I'll pass," Cloud said, without even glancing up. He couldn't have sounded less interested even if he tried.

"Ehh," Cid scowled, scanning along the beach, before pointing to a long-haired blonde sitting at the far side of the beach. "Oh, hey, what about that little number sitting over there? Pretty sure she's been lookin' over here ever since you got your keester down here, Cloud."

"That's great for her. She can look all she wants, but I'm not interested," Cloud shut his eyes and tried to relax. "Since when have you turned into such a lech, Cid? Shera, you're okay with your husband's wandering eye?"

"Eh, it's ain't nothin' all that serious," Cid laughed. "My eyes ain't wandering. In my age, I'm just damn lucky my eyes still work."

Shera rolled her eyes and laughed, "I've come to accept Cid for who he is, even the more sincerely questionable parts of him."

Cloud smirked, "Well, whatever works for the both of you."

Cid leaned forward to Cloud, "You sure you don't want to go and try it with that blonde over there, Cloud? If you won't, I will." His wife slapped him on the arm.

Cloud scowled, almost sounding annoyed. "I am 100% certain that I am not interested, Cid. I really, _really_ am not looking for someone, okay? Can we drop this?"

"Whoa, easy now. Simmer down, Cloud," Cid leaned forward and patted Cloud on the shoulder. "No hard feelings, okay? I was just messin' with ya, okay? Sorry if that upset ya."

"Thanks, Cid...I guess," Cloud said, sitting up from the towel and getting up onto his feet. "I think I'm going to head down to the water for a bit."

"Sure thing, Cloud." Once the blonde was out of earshot, Cid turned to Shera. "Well, he definitely ain't over Aerith, that's for sure."

"Of course he's not, Cid," Shera turned to him and took hold of his hand. "He probably never will be and, you know what, that's perfectly okay. Other people can't decide how others should feel or what they should do or when it's time to move on. When you lose someone you care about, it changes things forever. If you put yourself in his shoes, what would you do if you lost me?"

Cid shifted his head in realization. He turned to Shera and squeezed her hand gently, "Damn. I wouldn't want to find someone new, either. Not now or ever. And if someone even suggested it, I'd probably knock their lights out."

"Exactly," Shera's lips thinned as she nodded.

Cid scratched the back of his head, "I guess I deserve to have my lights knocked out then, huh?"

Shera laughed and pressed a hand against her pregnant stomach, "No, but I think you've learned to understand Cloud and his feelings a little bit better if you were to understand what he must be feeling. It's not that he _doesn't_ want someone, he lost the one that was that someone."

"You're right. I guess I never really thought about everything he must be feelin' since he's always been so quiet. Now I wish I hadn't said anything at all," Cid grunted and frowned. "Poor kid."

Cloud made his down to the crashing ocean waves, feeling the water run over his feet. Although it was hot, he didn't really have the desire to want to tread too far out into the open waters, so he only walked in up to his knees, but even that made him feel significantly cooler. A cool breeze whipped along the beach as the soldier enjoyed the water.

His moment of relaxation was met with a sudden splash, as Yuffie dove into the water near him. "Hiya, Cloud! Glad to see you finally joined in the fun."

"I'm trying to," he said back.

The ninja tilted her head, "Why the long face?"

He sighed and crossed his arms, "It's just that Cid annoyed me a little bit just now. I couldn't even enjoy a moment at the beach before he decided to try and set me up with just about anything that had a pulse."

Yuffie groaned, "Ugh! What a skeeze. I'm sure his pregnant wife really enjoyed his leering. Now can you understand why I can't stand him?"

The blonde raised his eyebrows and suppressed a small smirk. "I don't know. It's difficult when others don't understand how I feel. I don't want their suggestions and I don't want them telling me how I should live my life."

"Or how to cope with losing Aerith," the ninja asked, knowing how much the flower girl meant to him.

He nodded, "Yeah. People can move on if they choose to do so, but I just...don't want to. I don't. I never did. How could I think about finding anyone knew when I lost the one I-..." Cloud closed his eyes and sighed.

Yuffie crossed her arms and tilted her head. She figured if Cloud was annoyed and upset, it was probably just best to let him talk for however long he wanted to, especially when he never said much in the first place. "I know, it's hard. She was like...the first friend I've had, like a sister. I miss her and I know you do, too."

"More than anything," Cloud said, as he scratched the back of his head. "I just...wish I'd told her what she meant to me when I had the chance to. I wanted to, but I stopped myself. It felt like saying what I wanted to would somehow make it all real, and make it easier to lose it all. Instead, I never said what I should have...and I still lost her."

"I guess, we all need to learn to appreciate people while we can, "Yuffie said, crossing her arms. "You may not have told her everything you wanted to, but I'm sure she already knows."

"I hope so," Cloud nodded, feeling a warm pulsating light come from within his heart. It was so sudden and abrupt that it caused him to raise a hand to his chest. Before he could question the feeling any further, Yuffie spoke out.

"Well, Cloud, just keep livin' life the way you want to and not give a crap on what anyone else thinks," the ninja said. "After all, I know you already know how to do that second bit."

Cloud finally let out a smirk and nodded his head, "I do."

"Exactly! You just do what keeps you happy and to hell with whatever anyone else says or thinks," she cheered. "That's what I keep on trying to tell Cid but every time he locks me out of his house."

"Well, thanks, Yuffie," Cloud said. "Wasn't exactly expecting guidance from you."

She mocked a sophisticated laugh, "I might be young, but I'm smarter than everybody gives me credit for. And I don't put up with crap from idiots. Now, if only there were more people like me..."

Cloud shifted through the water and turned back to the ninja, "Well, thanks for the talk. I feel a little better now getting all of that out."

"What are friends for?" The ninja smirked and then looked at him, "We...are friends, right? I never really knew. Still don't."

Cloud paused for much longer than he should have. "I...guess."

"That's better then a 'no'!" The ninja laughed, "Well, I'm gonna get out of here. My fingers are getting all pruney! Hey, but if you need some help looking through the city tomorrow, you know where to find me!"

He nodded. "I'm gonna need all the help I can get. I'm planning on doing the brunt of the search tomorrow."

"Well, with me helping, we'll get this city covered in a flash," the ninja exclaimed, pumping her fist into the air. "See ya then!"

Cloud watched as the ninja raced her way out of the water and onto the beach, kicking up the sand behind her as she ran to her beach towel.

He exhaled out and closed his eyes, turning back to the open ocean. He relaxed as he listened to the sounds of the ocean waves crashing against the shore fill his ears. He opened his eyes and stared at the orange glow of the soon-to-be setting sun before him. His hand went back up to his chest, to feel that same pulsing light that came from within him just a few moments ago. He couldn't describe the new feeling, but it was warm and it completely wrapped his heart with Aerith's presence.

With his hand pressed to his chest, he closed his eyes and a small smile formed on his lips.

* * *

Barret, Tifa and Reno continued driving late into the night, as their buggy traveled along the grasslands away from Kalm. The grasslands stretched for miles, large mountains running adjacent on either side. From here the grasslands gave way to large open fields where the Chocobo farmlands were found. The open plains became known as the perfect place to train and raise Chocobos. From the wheel of the buggy, Barret guessed it would probably be another hour or two before reaching the farm.

They had already been on the road for quite some time since leaving Kalm and the night had settled in, the sky filling with stars. Barret decided that they had done enough traveling for the day and parked the buggy to set up camp for the night. After they'd set up their camping tents, they started a small fire to prepare whatever packaged food they could cook for dinner. They'd been traveling all day and at least needed something to put in their stomachs to continue on.

After the hours behind the wheel, Barret had decided to head in for the evening, leaving Tifa and Reno outside around the fire.

The silent air passes between the two of them, the cracking embers of the fireplace offering the only interruptions the quiet night had to give.

Reno traced his plastic fork along the bottom of his 'dinner-in-a-can' and looked up at Tifa from across the fire. The young woman was looking down at her feet, deep in thought.

"Hey," Reno said quietly, finally breaking the silence between them that seemed to go on for hours. He stared at her apologetically, "I'm sorry...for those things I said earlier."

Tifa looked up at him, but stayed quiet.

"It wasn't right for me to say those things." He continued, "You said some things to try and hurt me, so I said some things to try and hurt you back, which...I know wasn't right for me to do, either. I guess I'm still getting the knack of this whole 'good guy' thing."

Tifa nodded and raised her knees to her chest, "It's okay. I'm sorry for hitting you, too."

"It's okay," Reno chuckled. "I deserved it and you have the right to be angry."

She shook her head and exhaled out, "I wasn't angry because of what you said."

He tilted his head and squinted.

She finally looked up at him and shrugged, "I was angry because...you were right."

Reno's face grew in concern.

"I know I haven't been a good friend. I've known that for awhile now and I would change so many things if I could," Tifa confessed. "I guess your words just dug a little deeper than I expected them to."

"You really think you haven't been a good friend," Reno asked.

"To Cloud? I know I haven't been," said Tifa. "We're good friends now, but I wish it could have always been this way. I know that there was so much that I could have...should have done better."

Reno stood up from his seat at the fire and decided to move closer to her. He pressed on, "Like what?"

"Just about everything," she smirked to herself. "It's strange. We were neighbors in Nibelheim, but we were never friends. I used to hang out with a big group of kids back then who never let him in or would make fun of him. I just went along with them, but now, I can't even remember half of their names."

She continued, "When Cloud wanted to go off and leave town to join the army, that was really the first time I ever really spoke to him. I had him make me a promise that night that he'd rescue me and that's when I started to like him," Tifa reminisced with a smile. "It was all very silly, really. I'd always had this dream of having this big hero come and save me and rescue the day...ever since I was a little girl. A part of me still even believed in that idea when I was older, but...I know that's not how real love actually works now."

Reno smirked and shook his head, "It's not."

"I know. Cloud didn't even remember the promise later on and my teenage self made it into the biggest thing ever, which...was unrealistic. I thought so much of that moment, like it really was something special for me, but...we were so young."

"Well, you were only a kid." Reno shrugged, "We all did silly, stupid stuff back then. We all did a hundred things that we thought would matter."

"I just couldn't shake this idea of having some knight in shining armor...and I tried so hard to shape Cloud into that person when I wasn't really accepting who he really was, that was the next worst part of what I did." Tifa laughed out of her own embarrassment, "It was all so silly. Promises and knights in shining armor, that's stuff a twelve year old would think up, write in their diary and then think they're gonna live happily ever after for the rest of their life. It's...just...not real. I guess, happily ever afters can exist, but...they don't happen the way we think they do from fairytales."

She looked into the flame, "When I grew up, all those dreams and ideas I had when I was a kid, it all made it so confusing...I really did love Cloud once _,_ at least that's what it felt like, but it led me to making a huge mistake."

"Which was," asked the redhead.

Tifa sighed and looked at him, a frown on her face and guilt in her eyes, "I lied to him about who he was and his past for too long. I made him believe that we were closer than we ever were, when really, we were...strangers to each other. It caused him a whole lot of pain and confusion, when I should have just been honest with him, but that made me fear that I'd lose whatever friendship I did have with him when he'd realized...we never really were close to begin with."

"Sounds messy," said Reno.

She raised an eyebrow and smiled at him, "It was. I know I made a lot of mistakes. I wanted to help him, I just never took the right way to do it. Now that I think about it, I don't think I ever...really even apologized to him for all that trouble in the first place. And I should have. I still need to."

"Well, if you and I are any examples, apologies never hurt anyone," Reno laughed.

She smiled at him and nodded, "I'm just...very grateful that Cloud still calls me his friend after everything. It took me some time, but my feelings for him changed in a way where I can appreciate our friendship so much more, in a way actually makes me happy - by being a better friend and looking out for him the way any friend would. If I'd been him and I had to put up with what I'd done, I don't know if I'd be so forgiving." She sighed and smiled, "He's a really good friend, I just hope I can be the same, too, now. To everyone."

Reno pushed his shoulder into hers, "Well, doesn't sound like you're the 'crappy' friend I made you out to be at all."

She stopped and looked down when she started fiddling with her fingers, "Well, Cloud's not the only one I should have been a better friend to."

"Who?"

She turned to him and replied, "Aerith."

"Why Aerith?"

"She was...honestly one of the first real girl friends I've ever had. I loved Aerith, she was...there was just something about her that could make anyone smile, even Cloud, which never ever happened," Tifa laughed. "You couldn't help but want to be around her, she was just so genuinely...kind and good. In this crazy world, you don't meet many people like her."

Reno nodded, "Yeah, I get that. She even made me regret bein' a Turk a few times."

Tifa felt a twinge of sadness welling up inside her, "But when I started to see her and Cloud become so close and develop their own world together, I hate to admit it, but I was so jealous. She made it so easy for Cloud to open up to her so naturally, it's no wonder they became as close as they did so quickly."

Her expression grew sad then, as her eyes lowered and glossed over, "When she left us, that's when I realized how much she really meant to all of us, especially him. I remember seeing Cloud the next day and he just seemed...so broken and empty. He didn't say a single word to anyone in over a week as we made away across the snowfields in the north. After losing her, it was like all energy was removed from him. I think that's when I knew that he...he really felt something special for her, you know, and when he lost her, he felt so lost himself."

Reno listened and watched as Tifa seemed to be on the verge of breaking down. It almost came so suddenly that he didn't know how to react.

Tifa felt her eyes fill up with tears then, as they spilled over her cheeks.

"T-Tifa?" Reno motioned out to touch her shoulder, but felt as though the slightest touch might break her.

She shook her head and wiped the tears from her face, "No, you-you don't understand, Reno. I really have been a bad friend to the both of them. I know I have been."

He placed a hand on her shoulder, "Tifa, what are you talking about?"

She exhaled out through a sob, new fresh tears spilling down her face as she tried to control the uneasiness in her voice. "I...I let something...horrible happen, something no one knows about. And I haven't ever been able to forgive myself for it." She sobbed and covered her face in her hands.

Reno gently squeezed her shoulder, "Hey, hey. It's okay. If it'll make you feel better, you can tell me. I...I won't judge, promise."

She looked up at him with tear-filled eyes, "Okay, but if I tell you, you have to promise not to tell anyone, especially not Cloud. If he were to find out..."

He stumbled over his words, "O-Okay, I-I promise."

Tifa exhaled as she thought back to the very day. She finally spoke, "As we left the Temple of the Ancients, our friends thought Aerith had left on her own for the Forgotten Capitol without saying a word to any of us..."

Reno nodded.

"...but that wasn't true..."

* * *

 _Barret and Tifa made their way through the dense, dark forest that surrounded the mysterious and legendary Temple of the Ancients. The temple stood hidden, tucked away from the rest of the world._

 _From the gnarled tree branches, they could make out the stone peak of the temple rising into the dark sky. The two froze in their steps when the whole forest began to tremble, a thundrous roar echoing from the temple._

 _"What the hell is that," Barret asked back at Tifa._

 _She pointed forward, "Look, the temple!"_

 _Streaks of blue lightning bolted around the dark void that emanated around the temple, the thunderous roar becoming deafening. From the distant woods, the temple seemed to collapse in and destroy itself, toppling from the sky._

 _When the roar faded, the woods fell silent as Barret stared at the temple ruins ahead of them. "It's...gone."_

 _"Cloud and Aerith are there!" Tifa took Barret by the arm, practically pulling him through the forest and to the temple ahead. They navigated through the woods, the next several moments seemed to pass in slow motion as they were only left to wonder about the safety of their friends._

 _"What happened to this place," Tifa asked, reaching the drawbridge to the temple ruins._

 _"Spike gave me a call while they were still in the temple," Barret explained quickly. "Said they found a way to get the Black Materia, but that it was gonna get messy! Before he could say anything else, the call cut out."_

 _"Well, this seems pretty messy," Tifa said, trying to make her way across the flimsy bridge as quickly as she could. "And what about the others?"_

 _"Vincent and Cid are makin' their way from the camp. Can't say what the hell Yuffie's up to. Can't even keep an eye on that goddamn girl," said Barret, following behind Tifa on the bridge. He felt the wooden plank beneath him buckle, as if it was unable to hold his weight, but it held firm after a steady moment of holding still._

 _Then, they heard the sound of an anguished cry, one filled with fear and pain. It was Cloud's cry for help._

 _The two turned to one another, concern in both of their eyes for their friend. "Cloud...!"_

 _They raced across the rest of the bridge to find their friends. They reached the temple ruins, seeing that a large, cracked pit had formed deep into the base of the temple. Amidst the piles of stone and temple debris, Cloud and Aerith were at the bottom of the pit._

 _Another anguished cry came from Cloud, echoing up from the deep pit. The blonde tried to stand, but he collapsed to his knees with another cry of pain. He clutched his head and his vision blurred. It felt as if his mind, his whole being was tearing itself apart. His whole body shook uncontrollably, trying to gain control of himself with all his might, but all efforts were futile._

 _Aerith quickly rushed to him, kneeling down on the ground with him. She gently placed her hands on his shoulders in an effort to soothe him. Her eyes met his and she saw the pain in them and it nearly fractured her heart._

 _Her eyes, her voice filled with concern. "Cloud, are you alright?"_

 _He shook and stumbled forward, white flashes of brief memories filling his tortured mind. "I...gave the Black Materia...to Sephiroth...?" Another cry of pain erupted from within, his mind empty of everything Sephiroth had just controlled him to do._

 _Aerith's eyes watered as she saw the pain and mental torture her bodyguard was enduring. In the midst of C!oud's crisis, she knew she had to be strong for the both of them and she would do whatever it took to soothe his mind and heart._

 _From the temple wall, Tifa and Barret stayed and spotted Red XIII, who'd been traveling through the temple with Cloud and Aerith. "Red! What happened!?"_

 _"Cloud, he...he handed the Black Materia over to Sephiroth_ _...," Red explained._

 _"What!?" Barret shouted at Cloud, "Why the $% would you do that, ya dumbass! Ya just gave that maniac the power to destroy the world!"_

 _"Barret, no..." Red's eyes widened, "Cloud is...he's not himself! I think Sephiroth is causing this!"_

 _"%$# &," Barret grunted._

 _Cloud tried to move himself to stand again, but another sharp pain split through his mind. He let himself fall freely into Aerith's open arms, as they wrapped tightly around his back. She held him into her, trying to make him feel comfortable and safe, like nothing in the world could hurt him there._

 _For a quick moment, Cloud's eyes widened and he regained a part of himself when she touched him - the part of his heart that held all his feelings for her. Overwhelmed by uncertainty and fear, he brought his hands to her waist fot some form of tangible attachment to reality and pulled her to him, resting his head down on her busom, his breath rough and heavy._

 _To both of their surprise, tears fell from his eyes, landing on the Cetra's skin. It was the most vulnerable, honest display of emotion she'd ever seen from him and she somehow knew that these raw emotions were only ever for her to see, given that Cloud trusted her so immensely. He stayed resting against her, too paralyzed in his own fear of being controlled again to do anything else._

 _He tried to form a sentence, his fractured mind barely understanding how to speak now. He choked out the words, blood trickling from the corners of his lips. "Wha...what did I do? ...Tell me, Aerith."_

 _The worried flower girl rose a hand to her bodyguard's lips, wiping away the blood that had flowed there. She knew then, there was a war being battled inside Cloud's mind and this was just the start of it. Sephiroth was cruelly relentless at trying to hurt Cloud and prove how entirely helpless the blonde was to do anything to stop him. But the flower girl was going to._

 _"Cloud, be strong, OK?" She wrapped her arms around him and caressed his head, running her hands through his blonde spikes as another jolt of pain struck through him. Her gentle, soothing ministrations seemed to work as Cloud fell silent then and tried to regain himself enough to stand on his own._

 _Another bright flash flooded through his mind and he toppled to his knees again, Aerith right there to catch and hold him. His mind split, his eyes glossed over as if in a haze, fresh blood spilled from his lips. "Urrrrrrgh...what have I done?!"_

 _Aerith embraced him tighter, calmly speaking to him, fully understanding that everything that was happening was far beyond Cloud's own will now. "Cloud, you didn't do anything. It's not your fault," she genty reassured him, trying to pull him back to reality again._

 _He lurched forward, his eyes meeting hers again. When she saw them, she could sense all the pain and hurt there, but in that instant, his eyes were pleading to her - pleading her to leave him behind and get away from him as quickly as she could. He wanted her safety and protection more than anything, but when he felt his mind splitting, the echo of Sephiroth's laugh in the back of his brain, he knew it was happening again - he was being controlled by the demon._

 _A white flash struck through his mind and all went blank. Aerith watched as Cloud's eyes glossed over, darkening and his pupils fading away. She held her embrace firm on him, trying to push away any darkness which took root in his body._

 _With a gnarled cry, a voice came from within the controlled man, a voice entirely unlike Cloud's. He ripped himself away from Aerith's embrace, a fiery tantrum setting an inferno within him. The sudden impulse of Cloud's quick movement sent Aerith falling backwards. She landed in a pile of debris, her head hitting hard against one of the temple stones, causing her to lose consciousnesses and black out, motionless and still._

 _Cloud swung his fist into the air, swinging at the spot where Aerith had just been kneeling in before losing consciousness. He fell to his knees at Aerith's feet, his mind entirely elsewhere in Sephiroth's grasps. The controlled man's closed hand swung down, striking Aerith in the side. His other hand came down, striking the stone ground next to the flower girl with a loud thud, as he split his hand open gaining a deep wound. He tried swinging through the air again, but the control held over his body caused his actions to fail him, as he struck himself in his other arm instead._

 _The dark force driving Cloud into madness seemed to want the soldier to attack and destroy anything it possibly could - the planet, Aerith, even Cloud himself._

 _"Cloud!? The hell is wrong with you?!" Barret shouted over the temple wall._

 _"Cloud, stop!" Tifa shouted out to her friend. "Red, do something!"_

 _Cloud let out another cry of pain, his eyes dripping with tears. He was Cloud Strife no more, he was just a puppet for Sephiroth's amusement. The blonde brought his hand down again, hitting Aerith by the side of her leg. His other hand came down, striking the pile of rocks beneath them, causing the skin on his fingers to crack and split open, blood flowing out._

 _He threw his open hands down over the stone by Aerith's feet, in an erratic display, almost like a child in the midst of a severe meltdown, practically begging, pleading Aerith to make him regain his sense of self and stop this mind-controlled madness, even when she was out cold. He rose his fist into the air again and struck the pile of stone again and then again one more time._

 _Aerith was right, there was a war waging within Cloud's mind, as the real Cloud fought with all his might to stop his controlled body from laying a harmful finger on the flower girl. He rose both his hands then and brought them down on Aerith's legs, nearly causing his disoriented body to topple over in a heap above Aerith._

 _Before he could make another move again in an attempt to attack Aerith, Red appeared down in the pit of the temple and struck Cloud in the back of the head. With a grunt, Cloud's body gave out and he lost consciousness, too, collapsing down to the ground at Aerith's feet. The blonde's head came to rest down in the flower girl's lap, his breath slowly evening out, finally free from the mental torture that crippled his mind._

 _Whatever had just happened to Cloud, whatever control over him that had wrought pain in his mind and heart, at least it was over for the time being._

 _"God damn," Barret breathed out, finally fully understanding the cruel nature of their enemy._

 _"Ay! What the $#% & happened here," Cid's voice came from the bridge, arriving at the scene with Vincent._

 _"Yo, we'll fill you in later," Barret turned to them. "I need your help to haul their asses outta there."_

 _Without another moment to spare, Red quickly went to Aerith and cast a healing spell over her form. The green mist surrounded her and only a moment later, she seemed to stir from her motionless state and regain consciousness._

 _Yuffie leaped out from the forest and perched herself on the temple wall. She shouted down into the pit. "Is she alright!?"_

 _"I'll...be fine..." Aerith answered a moment later, a bit groggily. Her eyelids slowly opened when she regained her senses. She sat up and brought a hand to the back of her head, rubbing the tender spot where she'd fallen. When she felt a heaviness over her, that was when she noticed Cloud's unconscious form lying across her legs._

 _"Cloud...Cloud!?" She brought her hand to his face and tried to revive him. "What happened? Cloud, wake up!"_

 _"Cloud lost all control, Aerith," said Barret, as he made his way down the pit. "He started attackin' everything - you, he even started to hurt his own damn stupid ass, too...hittin' anything he could like a fool. Handed the damn Black Materia right over to Sephiroth. Damn, all the work havin; to get it, too."_

 _"It wasn't Cloud, it was...Sephiroth. I had to stop him before things got any worse," said Red. "He'll be alright. He just needs his time to recover."_

 _"Cloud..." Aerith whispered out to him, raising a hand to his head to brush through his spikes. She couldn't help but notice how peaceful he looked now and she was at least grateful for that._

 _Yuffie jumped down into the pit and turned to the flower girl, helping her up from the temple rubble, "You're not hurt, are you?"_

 _"I'm fine, Yuffie. Really," Aerith reassured her._

 _"Come on, let's haul ass and git outta here," Cid called out as he leapt down into the pit. "Tiny Bronco's just off the coast, not too far from here. It'll be a tight fit, but we'll make it work."_

 _"Perfect. We get Spike's ass outta here and head someplace low-key to regroup and decide what to do now," Barret concluded, taking over his much desired role as leader in Cloud's absence._

 _Aerith looked down at the blonde soldier that rested in her lap. She whispered gently to him, "Don't worry, Cloud. You'll be okay. I'll make sure of it."_

 _A few hours had passed since the team had left the temple ruins and regrouped in the quiet town of Gongaga. By the time they arrived, the sun had only just started to set._

 _It was one of the smaller towns, a place where they could go without the worry of being followed or encountering much danger. It was the perfect place for them to pause their journey and decide what to do next, especially when the stakes were all the more higher with the Black Materia and the planet's potential destruction in the palm of Sephiroth's hand._

 _Aerith sat down on a bench opposite of a small hut, who's owner had graciously offered them the single bed they had to offer. She watched as Barret, Cid and Vincent carried Cloud's unconscious body in past the drapes that covered the entrance and set him to rest on the bed, hearing Barret call Cloud a 'spiky dumb fool' or something to that effect, while Cid grunted in response._

 _Tifa and Red walked past her then, still talking about the events that happened at the temple. Red hypothesized that Cloud should have recovered from the hit he gave him by now and that whatever was prolonging his recovery must be due to Sephiroth's influence over him. He wouldn't have been surprised if a few more hours passed before Cloud awoke again, as he seemed deeply affected by Sephiroth, she heard the red wolverine say before making his way off with Tifa._

 _On the far side of the village, the flower girl saw Yuffie tilt and scratch her head at the new Cait Sith stuffed plush body that had joined their team. The ninja couldn't tell if there was a difference between this Cait Sith and the one that was destroyed at the temple. Not that she was entirely fond of it in the first place, especially after finding out it was a Turk spy for Shinra._

 _Aerith looked at each of her comrades, remaining deep in thought. The truth was, she had just uncovered something while at the temple - a secret of her powers and the lineage of the Cetra. It was a secret only she came to realize, one only she could set out to achieve. Now, with so many new thoughts racing through her mind and as the rest of the group planned what to do next, Aerith remained there, thinking of what only she had to do next - for the planet, for Cloud._

 _"Hey there," Barret spoke softly to her, pulling the Cetra from her deep thoughts. "You okay?"_

 _Aerith looked up at him and nodded, "I have a lot on my mind."_

 _"I know what you mean. Another bitch of a day," he said, taking a seat on the bench next to Aerith. He reached into his vest and pulled out a small flask of whiskey._

 _Aerith turned to him and smirked, an eyebrow raised._

 _Before lifting the metal to his mouth, he saw the Cetra. "What? Swiped the damn thing from Cid when he wasn't lookin'. Figured I could use it," he finished as he lifted the flask to his mouth, downing a hearty gulp of the hard liquor._

 _Aerith suppressed a small chuckle from the man's contorted face as the taste of the whiskey kicked in._

 _He grunted out and extended the flask out to the flower girl. "Figured you could use it, too, though I'm thinkin' you probably aren't the type to like this strong stuff."_

 _"Well, I'm only human, too, you know." Before Barret could take the flask away, Aerith took it and brought it to her lips, quickly taking down a shot of the strong whiskey, seemingly handling the liquor better than Barret did._

 _Barret's eyes widened at the flower girl who downed her liquor without batting an eye. "Oh...alright then. You jus' full of surprises...like someone else 'round here I know."_

 _She let out a heavy sigh and closed the cap of the flask, before handing it back to Barret._

 _Barret stowed the vial back in his vest. "So, what's gotcha sittin' alone out here caught up in your thoughts? The rest of us are here for you, Aer."_

 _"I was just thinking about the Cetra and the temple, about what happened to Cloud back there. Everything that's to come in the future, really," she shrugged._

 _"Or lack of a future now that that damn Sephiroth got his hands on the materia..." Barret said. "If he uses it for whatever the hell he's doing, we'll be done for."_

 _"I'm not so sure. He might have the materia, but I don't think he'll win so easily - not with all of us together against him," Aerith turned to Barret with a determined glance. "Whatever happens, we'll find a way. I'm just concerned about Cloud."_

 _"Right. Yeah..." Barret said, noticing the look of sadness that suddenly appeared in the flower girl's eyes. After the way Cloud lost it at the temple and went mad, he couldn't blame her, either. He cleared his throat, "Look, Aerith, I know with what happened back there, you might not be able to trust Cloud right now, but I swear, I'll jus-"_

 _"You think I don't trust Cloud?" Aerith cut him off and looked at her friend, almost as if she'd been hurt by him, "Barret...I_ fully _trust Cloud. I trust him more than anything. That wasn't him back there, he didn't know what was happening to him. Neither did any of us."_

 _Barret remained quiet as the Cetra continued._

 _"I'm not going to give up on Cloud now just because things get rough. The thing he needs right now is my trust, all of ours. And I won't settle on letting him think he has anything less," she finished._

 _Barret felt a small smile form on his lips from her resolve, "You one stubborn woman, you know that?"_

 _"I know," Aerith smiled coyly. "Cloud will be alright, I'll make sure that he is."_

 _Barret stood from the bench and peered over to the hut where the blonde soldier slept. "You know, if that spiky jackass was awake, he'd probably be kissing the ground you walk on and begging for your forgiveness."_

 _Aerith smiled and shook her head, "He doesn't need to. I'd forgive him...for anything."_

 _"Still, Aer, the last thing that boy'd want is for you to get hurt," Barret shook his head. "He ain't the most talkative son of a bitch out there, but I know you mean something damn special to him. Don't ever forget that, okay?"_

 _Aerith couldn't help but smile and looked over to the hut where Cloud was._

 _"I'm guessin' that's why Sephiroth made Spike go mad and try to hurt ya. He really wanted to hit Cloud where it'd hurt 'im the most, damn piece of #$% &," Barret said._

 _"Well, Sephiroth can try all he wants, but he won't get far. Not when I have something for Cloud that's far more powerful than he'll ever understand," she finished with a beautiful smile._

 _Barret cockily crossed his arms and teased, "Oh yeah? And what's that?"_

 _She stood up and whispered, "Top secret, Mr. Barret."_

 _"Oh, you damn stubborn, mysterious woman..."_

 _Aerith shrugged and smiled to herself, turning away from Barret, who started to make his way back to the main part of the village._

 _"Fine!" Barret called out to her, "But if Spike loses it again, you can bet I'll be there to knock some sense into his spiky dumbass!"_

 _"Just don't go too hard on him," Aerith chuckled. "We'll still need him in one piece when we're going to face Sephiroth!"_

 _Aerith smiled as the burly man waved at her and charged towards the run-down village market._

 _Then, a sound echoed through the village, coming all the way from the ocean's coast just outside of Gongaga. The sound was that of a horn from an approaching cargo ship that would be docking on the coast shortly. As Aerith had discovered while in the village, that same ship would be setting sail early the next morning for the northern continent. The ship was to sail across the vast ocean and would dock on the southern coast of the northern continent, just off of the run-down, impoverished establishment of the Bone Village._

 _Aerith had planned to surrender all the Gil she had on her to the ship's captain to gain safe passage aboard the ship. Her destination - the Forgotten Capitol, the lost city of the Ancients, hidden deep beyond the vast, endless Sleeping Forest. From deep within her mind, she heard the voices of her ancestors, the Cetra, as the revealed to her the location of the_ _hidden capitol and guided her along her way._

 _She had discovered the 'secret' while at the Temple of the Ancients. The inherent wisdom and words of the past Cetra throughout history flooded through her and she began to understand things she never could before. With her heritage locked away within the temple, she heard the voices of her ancestors come to her, telling her what she had to do to protect the planet when the time had come. She knew what her role as the last Cetra meant and had been coming to terms with it over the last few hours. She was never afraid to face what was to come._

 _She knew what she had to sacrifice for the Planet, for everyone, for her friends...and, most of all, for Cloud._

 _The Cetra looked up at the setting sun. The orange glow of the sky faded into the dark night sky ahead of her. Another echo from the ship's horn signaled its' docking and she knew that the ship would be leaving just as soon as it arrived once the morning had come. She knew that she didn't have much time left and that if she and her friends were going to stop Sephiroth, she needed to act quickly._

 _She paced a few steps to a lonesome hut that stood away from the others and grabbed a satchel that she had collected. Prying the bag open, she found the few potions, ethers and fruits that she had purchased at the village market, which was only enough to last her for the short journey north._

 _She closed the bag and secured it over her shoulder. She grabbed her iron staff in one hand, her other tracing up to the White Materia that was kept securely in the ribbon in her hair, reassuring herself that she would have everything she would need for the final journey ahead of her._

 _Before she could even make a single step towards the village's entrance, a hand grabbed her by the arm and spun her around. Aerith gasped in shock and was turned around to face another one of her friends._

 _"Where do you think you're going?" Tifa asked her directly, a stern look in her eyes._

 _Aerith raised her hands up in innocent defense, "Wha-what are you talking about?"_

 _"You. Where are you going?" Tifa asked again, crossing her arms, almost as if she was about to scold Aerith like a child._

 _"Nowhere!" Aerith lied, forcing a smile onto her face._

 _Tifa stood there, tapping her foot impatiently, with a look on her face that let Aerith know that she was not be fooled._

 _"Tifa...I...I can't tell you," Aerith replied back to her in a hushed whisper._

 _A frown appeared on Tifa's lips, "Wait. You're...really leaving us? But why?"_

 _"Tifa, I told you. I can't tell you."_

 _"Well, that's...not a good enough answer!" Tifa shook her head and took hold of her friend's shoulders. "Why, Aerith?"_

 _"Because if I did, you'd never let me go!" Aerith, almost forcefully, took Tifa's hands and removed them from her shoulders. A quiet silence followed between the two._

 _Tifa felt her lip quiver, a cold chill passed through her blood as her heart lurched. Something felt off, something felt wrong and when Tifa felt this way, she was always right. It wasn't long before she felt the sting of tears in her eyes. "Aerith, you're...you're scaring me. What are you talking about?"_

 _The flower girl looked around them, making sure no one was nearby, before taking Tifa by the arm and bringing her a few more steps away. She turned back to her friend and looked at her directly in the eye. "Okay, but you have to promise me that you won't try and stop me."_

 _"Aerith, I don't know if-"_

 _"Promise me."_

 _Tifa looked into her friend's eyes and saw the determination, the unwavering certainty within them and how the flower girl practically pleaded with her to cooperate. She knew that whatever Aerith was doing, her mind would not be persuaded and that it was of utmost importance. Though, the secrecy behind it is what scared Tifa more than anything, as Aerith was always forthright._

 _Tifa nodded her head, giving into defeat when she realized the Cetra was too strong-willed too be persuaded. She felt a tear fall down her cheek, her voice cracking, "Al-alright...I promise."_

 _"Good," Aerith nodded, whispering to her friend. "When I was at the temple, I discovered something when I saw the ancient walls crafted by the Cetra, all the knowledge they left behind - a way to stop Sephiroth and the power of the Black Materia for good."_

 _"What?" Tifa asked._

 _The flower girl continued, "Yes, there's a place hidden far away in the northern continent, a lost settlement of the Cetra, where I'll be able to counteract Sephiroth and everything he's planning."_

 _"The northern continent? Lost settlement?" Tifa's brows furrowed in confusion, "What's waiting up there?"_

 _"It's a place where the Cetra first lived - a sacred place tied to my heritage. Only there, will I be able to summon enough power to stop the Black Materia and Sephiroth. Only a Cetra has the ability to do this," Aerith explained. "At least that's what the Cetra have told me..."_

 _"And...you're so certain that this power will work? That you can stop Sephiroth?" Tifa asked._

 _"I...I think so," the flower girl replied honestly. "I won't know if I don't try. It might be the only choice we have if we're going to save the Planet if Meteor is summoned."_

 _"I don't understand." Tifa shook her head, "How can you choose to believe in something you don't know is real?"_

 _"Believing in something is exactly what makes it real," Aerith answered finally with strong resolve. "I don't know everything. I don't have all the answers, but I know what my heart tells me I should do. It's the same with Cloud. We don't know what'll happen and we don't have all the answers, but I believe in him. I believe that what I will do can protect everyone."_

 _Tifa looked up at her friend, trying to feign a smile of reassurance. "You'll...you'll come back to us though, right? After you summon this power and everything's taken care of?"_

 _Aerith stared at her friend, her lips forming into a frown and her eyes forcing themselves away._

 _Tifa then felt the sinking feeling in her stomach she hated so much, the one she feared was coming - the feeling something wasn't going to end well, of impending danger and sadness. She realized, "You...you don't know when you'll be coming back. That's why you wanted to leave without telling anyone, without anyone following you. I...I can't believe this."_

 _The flower girl sighed and nodded, "Yes. Please Tifa, don't try and convince me to change my mind. Just give me some time. Give me until tomorrow and I'll be gone by then."_

 _Tifa felt a few tears falling down her face, unable to shake the sinking feeling in her stomach. "Aerith, I...I can't. Cloud would...he would never let you go off and do this on your own, you know that. He'd never let you go without him. If something happened to you, he'd...he'd be devastated. He'd never forgive himself. Please. Please, Aerith, don't go."_

 _Aerith grabbed her arms and whispered to her friend, "Tifa, I have to. Don't say a word to anyone and everything will turn out okay. We're keeping this between you and me. Okay?"_

 _"Aerith, I...I don't..."_

 _Aerith looked at her friend, hopefully, "I have to do this. For everyone. For Cloud. Okay?"_

 _A long silence passed between them, but the barmaid nodded her head and finally agreed, "O...okay."_

 _"Thank you, Tifa." Aerith sincerely smiled at her friend, holding tightly onto the satchel over her shoulder. She brought her hands up to her friend's face, wiping away the tears that had fallen down her cheeks. "You're a good friend. Thank you for everything, Tifa."_

 _Tifa felt another sting of pain in her heart by the Cetra's words. If anything, she certainly didn't feel like a good friend, especially now. She felt like this parting with what was truly her first female friend was bothersome, that there was something telling her to stop the flower girl, to not let her out of her sight, to stop the future from playing out the way that it would. But she knew, the flower girl was far too stubborn to change her mind and she would do what her heart told her._

 _Tifa quickly wrapped her arms around the flower girl, taking Aerith back by surprise. She soon felt Aerith bring an arm around Tifa's back and tighten their embrace. She leaned up to Aerith and whispered, "Just take care of yourself. Okay?"_

 _Aerith pulled back from the embrace and looked at her friend, a bright smile across her face. Tifa recognized the smile, it was the same one that was on Aerith's face the first time the two had met in Wallmarket. A smile that brightened everyone's hearts and brought light to even the darkest places._

 _Tifa took a few steps back, bringing up her hands to wipe away the fresh tears that had fallen down her face. With a final glance at her friend, she nodded and tried to muster a smile._

 _Aerith smiled and gave her a quick, simple nod._

 _Tifa turned away from the flower girl and made her way back towards the village market. With every step she took, the feeling that she had just made a terrible mistake grew within her heart. She instantly regretted making this promise to her friend and knew that she would never forgive herself if something was to happen to Aerith._

 _She wanted to stop her friend, to break their promise, to be rid of the terrible feeling that she couldn't shake, but when she turned back to look over her shoulder...Aerith was gone._

* * *

"So, you knew that she...?" Reno questioned, "You knew that she was going to die?"

"No. I couldn't say for sure, but I knew something terrible was going to happen, which it did," Tifa revealed, a frown on her lips. "I could have stopped her. I never should have let her go. If I said something to anyone, we could have found her with more time. We could have changed things. If I hadn't kept that promise, maybe things would be different. Maybe she'd...she'd still be here."

"But she was the only one who could save the Planet," Reno said. "If she didn't, there's a good chance none of us would be here right now. There's nothing that anyone could have done."

"Is that true, though?" Tifa's thought out loud, "If I'd told the others, if Cloud knew what she was trying to do or what would happen to her, he'd never let her go in the first place. He'd try and convince her, all of us, that there'd be some other way to save the planet and stop Sephiroth. He would have...tried to convince her that they could find some other way."

Reno shrugged and frowned, "I guess we'll never know."

"I guess not," Tifa said, before falling on her back to gaze up at the stars. "She risked everything to save the world, to save Cloud. She lost everything, when she deserved to have so much happiness." She closed her eyes, "I'll never forget the sacrifices she made to let all of us continue on."

Reno nodded and laid down on his side, "Well, I guess when you find someone worth fighting for, you're willing to sacrifice just about anything, right?"

She nodded, "Mm. Maybe one day, I can find that, too - someone I'd give my life for. It must be a pretty amazing feeling to feel so much love for someone that you'd be able to give up your life without having to think twice."

Reno smirked down at Tifa, "So, Tifa Lockhart hasn't given up on finding true love after all, then?"

She laughed from her place on the ground and turned to him, placing her face in the palm of her hand. "Hmm, not entirely, but I'm not going to go out looking for it and trying to make it happen. If someone comes along one day, then...maybe, who knows? Until then, I'm okay with being on my own."

"On your own, huh?" Reno laughed and watched as she sat up.

"Well...if I'm going to find someone, what I feel needs to be real." She closed her eyes and smiled, lowering her head, "No knights or heroic promises, just someone who will love me the way I am, the way that I'd love them for being who they are." She trailed off and started to laugh, "I don't even know what I'm saying. I just think that it would feel something like that? That finding the right person just all clicks into place and when you feel it, it feels good and right and there's no second guessing it. When I feel it, I'll know."

Reno gave her a small chuckle and nudged her, "Well, I think it's better that you don't search for it, but don't hide from it, either."

She nodded. "Look at you. Reno, the love expert."

"Hey, I know all the right things to say to make the ladies swoon," he bragged with a smirk.

"Well, aren't you charming," she teased him back. "You better watch out. That dangerous air of you being a Turk is slipping away...and that's fine. I like this Reno, as unexpected as he might be."

He laughed, "You know, sometimes some of the best things come from the most...unexpexted places we never thought they would."

"That can happen," she smiled before turning to him. "Hey, thanks for listening to me. Can you keep what we talked about just between us? I know I said the whole "we aren't friends' thing earlier, but-"

"Don't worry about it, you can trust me," he smiled and nodded. "You feel better, though?"

"Yeah, it felt good to get all that out into the open. I think I've been keeping it pent up inside for too long, it felt like I was about to burst." Tifa let out a sigh, "So, that's the worst of me laid out for you to see. I really haven't been the best, Reno, so you can make fun of me all you want."

"No, but you're only human. We're all gonna make mistakes," he shrugged. "What's more important is owning up to them."

"You're right," she smiled. "I guess I just hope everyone can see me as the person I want to be, not as the one who made those mistakes."

Reno stood up and looked down at her. He spoke softy, a gentle smile on his face, "Well, if you saw yourself the way that I see you now, you wouldn't have anything to worry about."

Tifa turned to face up at him, their eyes connecting for just a moment. She'd be lying if she said she wasn't taken by surprise as she blushed, but still, it was nice to hear. She smiled, "Thank you."

Reno slowly stretched and made his way over to the tent, "Ahh, I'm gonna try and get some sleep. It's probably gonna take me at least another hour to get some shut-eye, what with Barret's snoring."

"You do that," Tifa turned to him and chuckled lightly. She watched as he got into his tent and zipped up the entrance.

Tifa sat on her own by the fire, the quiet calm of the dark evening surrounding her, almost peaceful enough to ease her to sleep. She stared into the flickering, dancing embers and thought of everything she had just revealed moments earlier to Reno. Although an enemy once, he made it so easy for her to open up and talk, even about things she'd never said to anybody. It all just felt so easy and nice to talk with a different side of someone she'd never thought existed.

Then, she couldn't quite explain it, but she felt a sudden happiness, an excitement when a smile began to form on her face. Was it growing closer to someone she never thought she could? Maybe it was being able to trust someone who was once an enemy? Whatever it was, Tifa sat there, the feeling of excitement, warmth and mystery that filled her then.

She brought her knees up to her chest and smiled, recalling Reno's words from earlier.

What she was feeling now most certainly came...from an unexpected place she never thought it would.

* * *

Lost in a deep sleep in his bed back at the inn, Cloud turned in the middle of the night as a dream began to form in his subconscious.

 _In the small hut on the edge of the village of Gongaga, Cloud was sleeping quietly on the only bed in the tiny house. He'd been passed out since the temple, ever since Sephiroth's manipulation had gotten the better of him. It was just after sundown and a small candle on the table across from the bed was the only source of light in the room._

 _Then, Cloud's eyes opened._

 _He briefly observed the room around him. He didn't know where he was or how he got there, but with the immense pain that seemed to course through his brain, he didn't really care. His head felt heavy, like it was made of cement and was ready to crack open at any moment. He tried to shut his eyes, wishing the pain away, but it only made things worse. He felt paralyzed and motionless, as if he was still gaining his sense of self back._

 _His eyes opened then when he thought about Aerith and what had happened back at the temple. He'd remembered it, even though his mind was so far away elsewhere in the hands of Sephiroth. A small part of him could remember how helpless he was, how frightened his friends had become and most of all, even at his darkest, how Aerith never left his side once, regardless of what he could have done to her._

 _Cloud felt his heart crack open then. How could he do that to her, he thought to himself. Aerith being hurt was the last thing he'd ever want. He was her bodyguard and he was going to protect her, always. He looked down at his hands, seeing the bandage wrappings around his fingers and knuckles._

 _But I'm the one who hurt her, he thought to himself, on the verge of crying as he exhaled out. How could he, he kept asking himself over and over, each second causing his guilt to grow only more. He felt sickened by himself, that he'd somehow do the very thing he'd hate to have happened. The bandages weren't enough, he couldn't look at his hands. He would have been happy if Sephiroth would have removed them during their next encounter._

 _His heart ached whenever he thought of Aerith. He prayed that she was safe somewhere with the rest of their friends. He prayed that she wasn't hurt, but most of all, he prayed that she didn't hate him as much as he hated himself right then._

 _How could she not, he ruined everything, he convinced himself. He broke her trust and destroyed the bond they'd spent so much time building. He wouldn't blame her if she never wanted to see him again._

 _He closed his eyes in defeat, an exhale escaping him. He couldn't continue on anymore. He couldn't see this journey through and the road ended here. He'd failed his friends, himself and Aerith, that was enough to finish this journey right then. He was lost in all of the confusion, utterly lost and defeated._

 _His eyes opened when he heard a shuffling from the entrance of the hut._

 _The cloth hanging over the hut's door parted as the flower girl quietly appeared, stepping from the night shadows and into the glow of the candle. She'd looked beautiful, but he thought she always did. Being there, it's almost felt like a dream._

 _When she appeared, he'd never felt his heart flow with so much emotion at once. He was happy and grateful that she was there with him and safe, but then he was angry with himself for what he'd done, next he was anxious with what Aerith would say next, finally he was heartbroken that this had happened at all. In the mixture of feelings that raced through him, he remained quiet, unsure what to say, unsure what to do._

 _She stayed still for a moment, looking at him, before a small smile appeared on her lips. She quietly closed the drapes behind her and walked towards Cloud._

 _The blonde winced as he sat up, but he bore the pain, nonetheless._

 _She had stopped right at the edge of the bed and frowned when he let out a sharp gasp of pain. The two of their eyes met for a moment, before Cloud pulled them away to stare down at his hands and then immediately to the floor._

 _After that moment of silence, her voice cut through it. "Cloud, I-"_

 _She stopped when his strong arms wrapped around her waist and pulled her into him, resting his head over her breasts as he embraced her tightly. She was taken aback to say the least and stood there as a gasp escaped her, but only a second later, her arms quickly secured themselves around his shoulders, her fingers delicately tracing through his blonde spikes._

 _They stayed like this for a long while, lost in their embrace. Nothing else mattered in that moment excerpt one another and they didn't mind that. Cloud embraced her, his body pleading for her forgiveness._

 _Aerith's eyes grew with sadness then when she felt the warm tears fall on the skin of her chest. To her surprise, Cloud only gripped onto her tighter, hiding his tears as he cried into her. Even as she tried to soothe him by delicately running her hands down through his hair and down the back of his neck, his tears never stopped._

 _It broke her heart seeing him like this. She knew he'd blame himself for what had happened, but she didn't blame him at all. She wasn't angry or upset for what had happened, she didn't fault him for attacking her beyond his own will, her only pain and sadness came from seeing Cloud so broken and devastated now._

 _"Shhh," she tried to gently soothe him._ _She gently brought her hands to his cheeks and brought his face up to meet hers. Her heart shattered when she saw the sadness in his blue eyes and the trails of tears that fell from them. As he exhaled deeply, he could barely continue to stare into her eyes; he felt as though he didn't deserve anything from her after what he'd done, especially not her caring gaze._

 _Cloud tried to move his face to the side, to show Aerith that he knew how unworthy he was of any affection or forgiveness, but the flower girl kept him in place. She gently grazed her thumbs across his cheeks to wipe the tears from his face._

 _"I'm sorry," Cloud said, shutting his eyes. He shook his head, shutting his eyes tighter when he felt fresh tears spill forth, "I'm so sorry, Aerith."_

 _"For what," she genuinely_ _asked him._

 _"For everything. For what I did to you back at the temple," Cloud cried and leaned his head down onto her chest. "I've hurt you. I did the worst thing I could do and I hurt y-."_

 _Aerith had him look up at her, "Cloud, that wasn't...you. I know you'd never want anything bad to happen to me."_

 _"But it did and it was done with my own hands," he sobbed, lifting his bandaged hands to wrap around her waist. "I did this damage to us, Aerith. How could you even face me again? Why would you want to? I...I betrayed you. I'm...I'm your bodyguard."_

 _"Yes, you are," Aerith replied and smiled down at him, "Cloud, you haven't done any damage to us and you don't need my forgiveness. You already have it. I'd forgive you for anything."_

 _"How?" He genuinely asked, his lips trembling, "How can you forgive me? What if he tries to make me hurt you again? What if he tries to make me do something even worse next time? I can't live with the thought of hurting you, Aerith, and that's exactly what he wants. It's killing me. The thought of something happening to you, especially at my own hands, it...it kills me."_

 _"You won't follow through with it, Cloud," she reassured him._

 _ _He shook his head, "But how can you be so sure?"__

 _ _"Because, I trust you more than anything," she looked into his eyes, never breaking her gaze once to ensure how certain she was. "I'm not going to give up on you or blame you or guilt you. Never. Even if you're uncertain of some things and we don't know everything that's happening to you. You're never going to lose me or my trust."__

 _Cloud lowered his eyes, "I don't deserve you."_

 _"Now, that isn't true," she shook her head and tenderly wiped the tears away from his face, before moving her arms over his broad shoulders to pull him closer into her. "Cloud, there is no where else I'd rather be in this world than right here and right now, with you."_

 _He embraced her back and wrapped his strong arms around her waist, needing to feel as close to her as he possible could. He didn't know how this flower girl, this angel that he'd had in his very arms refused to blame him or guilt him, but more importantly, how, throughout all the people and souls that existed within this world, it was his that she wanted to be beside, always. It was an overwhelming, incredible feeling to know someone had felt this way about him, but he had felt the exact same for the Cetra._

 _The shut-off, cold mercenary was no more once she'd walked into his life and his icy exterior, his frozen heart had thawed with every moment they'd spent together. Now, the frost had chipped away and what remained in his heart was nothing short of absolute love for her. It was exhilarating and wonderful and intoxicating, but also so scary for the anxious soldier. He didn't know what he did to have met this flower girl, but he was grateful and forever changed because of it._

 _Their embrace lasted a long while before Cloud had loosened his grip and pulled back. He looked up at her, his cheeks flushed when she smiled down at him, "Aerith, I-"_

 _She combed her fingers through his hair as she let him continue on, a small smile appearing on her lips, urging him on with a gentle nod._

 _He continued, in a silent whisper, "I'm...just so glad you're safe." It wasn't what he wanted to say, not by a long shot._

 _Nontheless, Aerith smiled at him and brought her face dangerously close to his, so much so that it caused Cloud's breath to hitch. She placed her forehead against his, their noses just touching. "You know, I have a pretty great bodyguard that's real good at what he does. There's just one problem with him, though."_

 _Cloud rolled his eyes and smiled, deciding to play along, "And what's that?"_

 _"Blames himself too much for things that aren't his fault," she said, letting out a small giggle. "But I suppose I can let it slide since he's just far too cute of a bodyguard to give up."_

 _He shook his head and let out a small chuckle, "Yeah, yeah, don't start picking on me now." The two shared a small laugh together, before the room fell silent and Cloud smiled at her, placing his hands on her hips._

 _He gently pulled on her waist, "Will you...stay here with me tonight. Please?"_

 _She looked down at him, seeing the warmth and longing in his eyes. She couldn't say no, how could she? Even when she was supposed to be leaving first thing in the morning for the northern continent, even when she should have been preparing for what was to come, she couldn't bring herself to leave him, not when he was looking at her the way he was now - the look of endless devotion in his eyes._

 _"Of course," she said, leaning down to untie her brown boots, before she kicked them off._

 _Cloud scooted over in the small cot and lifted up the thin covers, allowing Aerith to settle herself down next to him, before he placed the covers back over them. It was his first time he'd ever been in a situation like this, where he was so close to a woman, but luckily Aerith took the reigns just fine. She turned around and curled herself against him, resting her head down on his chest. Almost instinctively, Cloud brought his arm up to wrap around her back and held her closer to him. His other hand rose up to trace through her long, chestnut hair and down her neck, feeling how gentle and soft she was. He closed his eyes, a small smile on his lips._

 _Aerith traced her hand along his strong chest, delicately playing with the fabric of his shirt, her fingertips moving in small circles along with it. She couldn't think of any place she would rather be in that moment but in the arms of her bodyguard. Even if this was to be the last night she spent on this earth, this, him and her alone and locked in this moment together, this is all she wanted and would have been enough to last countless years to come._

 _She'd hoped that it would last forever, but she knew the sun would soon rise and this moment would come to an end._

 _Cloud let out a sleepy yawn and hugged her tighter to him. His eyes closed and open, sleep slowly taking him, "Hey, remember the first night of our journey, when we were camping in the fields outside of Kalm?"_

 _She nodded against him and smiled, "Mhm, it already feels so long ago."_

 _"I told you I'd explore the world with you, that we'd even see the sky, even though you told me you were afraid of it when you were younger," Cloud reminded._

 _"I was afraid of many things back then, but no more," Aerith let out a small laugh._

 _"Then, when we were on the ship to Costa Del Sol, I made you a promise that I would take you on the Highwind one day," he continued, starting to sound like he was dozing off._

 _"Mhm, I was so excited."_

 _"I was talking to Cid and it turns out the Highwind is his very own ship. He knows how to operate the whole thing and can fly it anywhere he wants to," he smiled down at her and closed his eyes._

 _"Really?"_

 _"Yeah, I told him that I wanted to take you for a trip on it soon, just the two of us," he nestled his chin against her head, excited about the dream he'd promised to one day make come true. "I think we should go as soon as we can. He told me the sights from the Highwind are amazing, it's like seeing the world completely differently. I want to be there with you to see it."_

 _"I'd love that, Cloud." She smiled against him, although her lip trembled as a tear fell from her eye, one he never saw._

 _"Someday, soon," he yawned again and dozed off._

 _"Someday...," she nuzzled closer into him and watched as the blonde soldier fell asleep, his chest slowly rising and falling as he quietly slept. She stayed there, never wanting this moment to end. With his strong arms wrapped around her, she felt as though nothing in the world could hurt her. She felt like it was right where she belonged and where she wanted to stay._

 _She would stay there for the rest of eternity if she could and she wanted to, she really did, but she couldn't._

 _She stayed there, resting against him, but never closing her eyes to sleep once. She was running out of time and with these final moments left to spare with her bodyguard, she didn't want to be asleep for them, even if it only meant being cradled in his arms as he slept. It was all she wanted and she was more than happy that she could spend the night this way._

 _The hours had passed and Aerith knew that the sun would be making its' appearance soon, bringing the morning with it, which meant her departure from Cloud and the rest of their friends. It was then when she realized that she started to second guess herself. Could she really do this? What if she told Cloud what she was going to do and what she knew would happen to her? She was certain that he would try and change her mind, try to find some other way, or hell, he'd say that the two of them should just live out whatever time they'd have and be together to enjoy it while they could._

 _Aerith knew what the price of saving the planet was, the sacrifice she would have to make to save everyone, everything - was her life._

 _In order to enact the great white magic to protect the Planet, it would require an even greater sacrifice. It was the 'secret' that she had discovered while at the temple and, after she'd spent the last few hours coming to terms with it, she now faced death without fear._

 _But when she thought about being taken from Cloud, her heart felt crushed. She knew that when the time her death would come, the pain she'd feel would not be from death itself, but the pain of being separated from him. The pain of death was incomparable to losing someone you'd never want to be without._

 _She wanted to stay by his side, forever. To help him overcome his uncertainties, to encourage him to fight on and to continue to melt the frozen ice that was Cloud Strife. She would have given anything just to have a few more days with him._

 _But she couldn't, not when everything else was at stake, so many innocent lives to be lost with the planet in jeopardy. She couldn't put her happiness above everyone else, even if it meant being taken from Cloud and the others and losing the very thing that made her happy. She just couldn't. It was her role as a Cetra to protect the planet when the time had come._

 _ _ _She thought about the children that played in Green Park back in Midgar, how their innocent lives would be claimed, cut short by something they couldn't understand. She thought about the flowers that continued to bloom in her church and how they'd wither away to nothing. She thought about the countless people and places she'd seen throughout her journey thus far and how they'd all disappear as if they'd never existed. She thought about her adoptive mother, Marlene and the new friends she'd made and how they'd all be lost. Without her sacrifice, they would all be gone, destroyed with the rest of the Planet by the power of Meteor.___

 _After all, it wasn't just everyone's world she was saving, but also his - Cloud's._

 _Admittedly, she wanted to stay with Cloud more than anything, she really did, but if she could save the world she shared with her bodyguard and give him the chance to live a life beyond this impending destruction, she would do just that. She realized she'd sacrifice anything if it meant saving Cloud, even if it meant losing the world the two of them had created together._

 _To save the Planet, to keep her friend's and family safe, to protect Cloud from this destruction - that was all she wanted._

 _She only wish she had more time. More time to be with Cloud. More time to spend with her friends. More time to see her mother once more. More time to explore the world that she had come to love. There was so much she would do if she only had more time. She'd wanted to stay by Cloud's side through all of it, to help him encounter Sephiroth and face the future, to be with him after this journey was over and to further explore the world together. She'd give anything just to have more time for all these things._

 _But time was gone now and she knew that if she was going to counter Sephiroth's plans and stop him, then she needed to act now._

 _She exhaled and gently traced her hand up from Cloud's chest to his face. She gently leaned forward and placed a light, loving kiss against his cheek. "My bodyguard."_

 _She stared at him, a small smile forming on her face as she looked at the man she'd loved more than anything. Having to turn away from him and leave him would come to be one of the worst pains she'd ever feel. Even as she counted down these final minutes together, she felt her heart slowly breaking at the thought of her being lost to Cloud and never getting to spend another moment together with him._

 _But she had to leave. She had the planet to protect. She was protecting Cloud, too. Her giving her life to save the planet was so easy for her to do because it was all for Cloud, after all._

 _She gently lifted herself up off of him, careful not to wake him from what was the first peaceful night of sleep he'd gotten in months. She rose the covers off of her and lifted herself up off of the bed, gently smiling as the blonde soldier mumbled slightly in his sleep._

 _ _He looked so peaceful now. She wished she could see him like this all the time.__

 _ _ _She leaned down and brushed her thumb over his cheek, "Cloud, I..." She stopped then, uncertain of what to say now. She was always so good with people and knew just what to say, but here, in these final moments, the words were so difficult to capture everything she'd been feeling.___

 _"I don't know all the challenges that wait ahead of us and everyone else, but all I can hope for is that you...don't give up no matter what happens, please."_

 _She felt tears form in her eyes, trying to memorize every detail of the blonde's handsome face, unable to look away from him as if his face was what she wanted to be engraved into her memory forever. "Cloud, thank you...for everything. I know everything that's to come ahead can be scary and confusing, but...I'll always be there with you, even if you don't realize it."_

 _She felt tears fall down her cheeks as it finally hit her that this was her goodbye to her bodyguard._

 _Cloud started to stir in his bed, gently moving against the mattress. He tossed slightly against the bed, as if he was unconsciously lost in a dream. A moment later, he breathed out and exhaled a name. "Aerith..."_

 _Aerith gently smiled at the blonde soldier that fell back into a deep sleep. She brought her hand up to his spiky blonde locks and gently ran her fingers through his hair, soothing him back to sleep._

 _ _"You...we've come so far now, haven't we, bodyguard? We can't give up on each other, on the Planet now." She smiled lovingly down at him and traced her hand over his heart. "Even if the world turns dark and crumbles away, even as the skies fall around you and everything seems lost, look in your heart and you'll find me there."__

 _She felt a warmth glow in the palm of her hand, soothing and peaceful, almost like it came from within Cloud's heart itself._

 _"You know, Cloud - a way to save the planet wasn't the only 'secret' I discovered at the Temple today..." Aerith spoke quietly, lifting up her hand to rest over her own heart. "A secret ancient power of the Cetra - one born from my people used to protect the person that...shared their same star."_

 _With one hand over her own heart, her other rested over his. She closed her eyes and concentrated on the powerful energy within her. As the voices of the Cetra and the Planet blended together in unison, she felt her and Cloud's hearts begin to pulse together as one, a radiant glow beginning to emit from beneath her palms, shining from within both of their hearts._

 _She felt a powerful, indescribable energy rush between hear and Cloud, joining together as one and fading into one another. She felt their hearts pulse with light, before the radiant glow faded back into one another and all returned to normal._

 _Aerith opened her eyes and stayed with her hand resting over his beating heart, smiling softly as he exhaled. "The Cetra spoke to me while in the temple and told me that this power...could only be achieved when two stars, two people's hearts, matched one another perfectly."_

 _Cloud shifted in his bed again, his hand reaching out towards the flower girl's._

 _"I might not know everything about this power, but when the time comes, it will reveal itself when you need it most. It will bind us together and keep your heart safe in a place where nothing will ever be able to hurt it." She smiled beautifully over him, brushing back his spiky locks, as she took in his handsome face. Her heart took flight with the harmony of emotions she felt then. "Cloud, I..."_

 _She stopped herself as a tear fell down her cheek. She smiled at him, "I...hope you'll understand one day."_

 _Aerith rested her hand on his cheek one last time, before she lifted herself up off of his bed. She secured her satchel over her shoulder and gripped her iron staff, making her way towards the exit of the hut. She looked over her shoulder, her heart tearing as she parted with her bodyguard._

 _"Goodbye, Cloud..."_

 _Tears fell from her eyes then as she forced herself to turn away from the man she'd come to cherish, leaving him behind to continue onward to the end of her journey. It was the most painful thing she'd ever felt, tears freely falling down her face as she left Gongaga, never stopping until she'd reached the northern continent._

 _As Cloud remained deep in sleep, a dream of him and Aerith in a mysterious forest played out in his mind's eye, his hand wandering to rest on his heart, a powerful magic circling within it._

Cloud's eyes shot open and he sat up, sitting in his bed in the dark room of the inn at Junon Harbor. the sudden force of power that he'd felt earlier in the day at the beach came again and it caused his body sit upright.

'Was that...real?' He asked himself. He remembered that night with Aerith in Gongaga, but could not ascertain if the ending of his dream was true or not. If it was, maybe something within him had begun to stir.

But what?

Cloud rested back, his head falling into the pillow as he kept his hand placed over his heart. His mind remained deep in thought, feeling the powerful glow within him. And just like that, it was gone again.

'What does it mean?' He said to himself, remaining deep in thought for the rest of the night.

* * *

The Forgotten Capitol stayed isolated and lonesome as the quiet, dark night continued on. The ancient city had practically been lost to time and human life, ever since the Cetra had called the place home years hundreds of years prior, before a horrible threat began to destroy them. Dark clouds hovered over the edge of the Forgotten Capitol, as the patter of rain echoed across the shell pathways that lined the lost city.

The sound of footsteps soon followed after the rain, as an intruder entered the city. An eerie giggle carried through the air.

Stepping through the fog of the night's darkness, the being stared ahead at the shell structure that was at the far end of the middle path.

With sinister intentions in her heart, Jenova's dark smile grew as she stepped forward.


End file.
